House Call
by LemonStar
Summary: ..Daryl/Beth.. AU - No zombies. Sheriff Rick Grimes needs to talk to Daryl Dixon about his whereabouts the night before. Different character POVs on different points in Daryl and Beth's relationship.
1. Rick

**First time writing them in this "no zombie" world and I kind of loved it. I might add random chapters to this one. **

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The house was in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of the woods, but Sherriff Rick Grimes drove, knowing exactly where it was. Everyone knew where Daryl Dixon's house was. In the seat beside him, his partner, Shane Walsh was talking about the game from last night but Rick wasn't listening. He didn't know how Shane wasn't more nervous about this. There wasn't a single part of him that wanted to do this. Daryl was a Dixon and the Dixons were completely unpredictable. Doing this, anything could happen.

The house was small and worn down, in need of a paint job, but as they got out of the car, Rick noted that the random junk from the front porch was gone and now, there were small bouquets of flowers hanging upside down, drying out. The front door was open and through the screen door, they could hear someone playing the piano. Rick knew who it was and he took a deep breath before stepping onto the creaky porch and raising a fist to knock on the screen door.

The playing stopped abruptly and a few moments later, Beth Greene – now Dixon – appeared, a warm smile on her face but it faded when she saw the two of them.

It had caused quite an uproar when sweet and young Beth Greene, daughter of Hershel Greene, had run off and gotten herself married to Daryl Dixon. No one understood how Hershel could just stand by and let that happen but the man was pretty much silent on the topic and was almost acting like a man alright with it.

"Hi, Beth," Rick took off his hat. "Can we come in?"

Without a word, Beth pushed open the screen door and stepped back so they could enter. The house inside was clean and neat, the house of people who didn't have money but made due with what they had.

"Daryl around?" Shane was the one to ask.

"He's out hunting but he should be back soon. You can sit and wait for him. Would you like something to drink? I have a pitcher of iced tea in the fridge. And I just made brownies," Beth said, already moving into the kitchen.

Shane was already sitting down on the couch and making himself comfortable. Rick was a little more hesitant, looking around as he sat down beside him. Beth returned, handing them two glasses of iced tea and Rick nodded his thanks to her, trying his best to give her a small smile, but Beth didn't return it, turning around and going back into the kitchen.

Beth had always been the sweetest girl, always smiling and ready with a kind word for anyone. She played the piano and sang in the church choir and volunteered at the daycare center his wife ran, helping watch the children whenever she could.

Daryl Dixon, on the other hand, was nothing like his young wife. A bit older, he was the brother of Merle Dixon and the son of Will Dixon and coming from blood like that, no one stood a chance at being a decent human being.

When everyone heard that Beth Greene was now Beth Dixon, most of them assumed that Daryl had kidnapped her and Rick prepared himself to be called to the house for a domestic disturbance, showing up to see sweet Beth Greene with a black eye.

Rick sipped at his iced tea and watched Beth stand at the kitchen counter, humming to herself as she cut into a pan of warm brownies, their sweet chocolate scent hanging in the air.

They all heard a clomp of heavy boots and then the back door opened.

"Fuck, it smells good in here," Daryl Dixon said, making his appearance.

"Daryl Dixon," Beth gave him a frown and pointed to a glass jar on the counter. Daryl sighed and muttered something and dug into his pants pocket. He pulled out a dime and dropped it in, the coin clanging against the others already collected in there. "Better," she then smiled and Rick watched as she bounced up on her toes, kissing him on the cheek. "How was hunting?" She asked.

But the question went unanswered as Daryl saw they had company. His face, just a second before, relaxed, went to stone, his eyes growing dark and his jaw clenching.

Rick got to his feet. "Daryl," he nodded his head towards him.

Daryl didn't say anything. He remained near the back door and pulled the crossbow off slung across his back. Beth took it from him and then standing on her toes, she whispered something in Daryl's ear and the man nodded his head slightly.

Finally, he approached them. Without a word, he sat down in the chair across from them and Rick sat back down.

"Came by to talk with you," Rick stated the obvious. "Last night, your brother was caught on surveillance holding up the Super Duper Gas Station. An eye witness reported that he saw someone else outside but couldn't get a clear look at him."

"You mind telling us where you were last night?" Shane asked.

Daryl didn't say anything at first and Rick saw his hands clenched into fists; his jaw clenched so tightly, muscles in his face were twitching. Rick looked at him and waited to say something but Daryl remained silent. Compared to Merle, Daryl was always the quieter of the brothers. Practically a mute next to Merle who never shut up.

"Daryl, if you can give us an alibi-" Rick began but Beth then stormed in from where she had been listening in on the conversation from the kitchen.

"He was here," Beth told him and Rick saw a fury in her eyes he didn't know Beth Greene was capable of.

"From what time to what time?" Shane asked.

"He was here _all_ night," Beth turned her angry eyes on him. "My husband is not a minute man."

Rick looked to Daryl at that and was surprised to see the tips of Daryl Dixon's ears turning red and his eyes were now staring downwards almost as if the man was shy.

"You can prove that to us?" Shane asked and Rick cut him a quick glare.

That made Daryl get to his feet, his jaw, somehow, tightening even more. Beth placed herself in front of him as if she would have any chance of holding him back if that's what it came to.

"You want us to tape it next time?" Beth snapped.

"Alright," Rick stepped in. "We'll be going." He grabbed hold of Shane's arm and pulled him to the door. "Thanks for the iced tea, Beth," he said, none-too-gently pushing Shane back onto the porch. Rick paused though and looked to Beth. "You call me if you need me, Beth," he said. He glanced to Daryl and then back to Beth, making it obvious what he meant with his words.

"You can go now," she said and her jaw clenched just as Daryl's was behind her.

Rick slipped his hat back on and gave another head nod before stepping back onto the porch, the screen door slapping shut behind him. He turned just to see Daryl slam the front door behind them none-too-gently.

"Poor kid," Shane muttered. "Probably just got herself a beating."

And Rick almost found himself agreeing with him, especially when he heard a shriek from inside. His hand instantly went to the gun in the holster on his hip and he quickly looked through the front window. He stopped though, almost frozen to the spot. Beth was laughing, shrieking at Daryl, and he had tossed her over his shoulder as easily as any fireman.

But it was the smile on Daryl's face that made Rick stop, freezing still. He had known Daryl Dixon ever since he had joined the force and both he and his brother were two of the toughest sons of bitches Rick had ever seen. As far as he knew, he had never seen Daryl smile before; thought the man didn't even know how to. But he was now, smiling as Beth laughed and wiggled over his shoulder and his arms held onto her tightly.

Rick exhaled a sigh and felt the urge to knock again so he could apologize to them both for his inferences and assumptions but he didn't want to disturb them again. Instead, he pushed Shane towards the car so they could leave and give Daryl and Beth Dixon back their privacy.

He'd apologize at another time.

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	2. Lori

**I have found that I have fallen in love with writing this kind of Beth/Daryl and I have written the next short chapter - this one from Lori's POV. I have more ideas for this one and thank you so much to everyone who read and expressed an interest in reading more of this one. **

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**Part Two.**

Lori Grimes heard the familiar roar of the motorcycle outside and even though she knew who it was, she looked out the classroom window anyway. Daryl Dixon had parked alongside the curb in front of the daycare and remained astride the bike, smoking a cigarette. He was there everyday at five minutes after five, leaving his own job at a mechanic's shop to come and pick up his wife from her job.

She turned to look at his wife. Beth Greene. She still hadn't gotten used to calling her Beth Dixon yet and she didn't think she would ever get used to it. It just seemed so wrong to think that Beth – sweet young Beth – was now Daryl Dixon's wife.

Lori watched as she sat at the piano in the room, children dancing around and singing to the song, Beth laughing and playing and singing with them. When she and Daryl had run off and gotten married and everyone in the town found out, Lori hadn't believed it at first. She thought it was just a silly rumor that had been started for no reason whatsoever and held no truth.

But then, Beth came into the daycare center after the weekend and Lori saw the simple band on her left ring finger and the flush of her cheeks and the bright of her smile and just like that, Lori knew that it was true. Beth Greene had went and gotten herself married to Daryl Dixon.

And all Lori wanted to do was pull her aside and ask her what the hell she was thinking. Daryl was a Dixon and Dixons had a certain reputation in their town. And it wasn't a good one – at all. They were violent rednecks, criminals, drug dealers. They were trash, pure and simple, and now, Beth had gone and married one of them? What was she doing? Did she have any idea what she had done?

Each day that Beth showed up at the daycare center, Lori admitted to studying her carefully, looking for makeup hiding the bruises she was surely sporting. She admitted to not knowing that much about Daryl Dixon at all, he seemed to be the quieter one of the Dixon brothers, but he was a Dixon. What did she really have to know about him?

But Beth smiled as she always did and sang her songs and she never showed up to work with red eyes or a limp as if she had been beaten the night before. Lori admitted – reluctantly – that a couple of months later, Beth still seemed so happy. She almost reminded Lori of herself when she had first married Rick and was still in that wedded bliss where everything was perfect and wonderful. Lori wondered how long that would last for Beth. Would it still last past the first slap?

Lori looked out the window again to Daryl. Parents were beginning to pick up their kids and he remained sitting there, waiting, not looking impatient or angry. His face looked rather blank. He wore dirty jeans with holes in them, a sleeveless flannel shirt and a leather vest with angel wings on the back. He was usually dirty from his job, oil stains on his hands and sometimes his face.

She looked back to Beth. She wore a floral dress and cowboy boots and a yellow cardigan. Her blonde hair was pulled up into a ponytail and she was so pale and clean – Daryl Dixon's polar opposite.

Once the last kid had been picked up and Beth helped Lori clean up, it was twenty after five. Beth took her bag and slung it over her chest, giving Lori a smile.

"I'll see you Monday, Lori," Beth said, heading towards the door.

"You have a good weekend, honey," Lori said. "And you call me if you need anything."

Beth didn't say anything to that but she knew what Lori meant and she sighed softly to herself. She nodded slightly and gave another small smile before leaving the room.

Lori watched her through the window as Beth hurried to the motorcycle, Daryl watching her come. She said something and he shook his head. She bent down then at the waist and met his lips with hers in a short kiss before climbing onto the motorcycle behind him, her arms sliding around his middle. He said something to her from over his shoulder and she shook her head now, smiling, and Lori saw Daryl's hand touch Beth's arm, a light touch, dirty fingers lingering on porcelain skin, and then he started the bike and took off with a roar, disappearing down the street, heading towards their home in the woods.

Lori closed up the daycare center for the weekend and tried not to have her mind linger on Beth Greene. She picked up a pizza for dinner and she and Carl ate as Rick came in later from his shift, tired and quiet.

"Everything alright?" Lori asked later as they cleaned up the kitchen.

Rick nodded but didn't say anything else. "How was your day?" He asked.

Lori sighed heavily as if she had been waiting for him to ask her that. "I'm worried about Beth," she said, turning and leaning back against the sink, arms crossed over her chest.

Rick looked to her, his face neutral but his eyes revealing his alarm. "Why? Did something happen?"

"No…" Lori shook her head. "She's so happy," she then said.

Rick nodded and finished loading the dishes into the dishwasher. "Yeah…" he said slowly as if he didn't want to admit that, either.

They didn't talk further about it and the weekend was busy with the usual – running errands and going to Carl's soccer game. When Monday came around again, Lori was already in the center when she heard the roar of the motorcycle. She looked out the window and saw Beth already climbing off the bike before Daryl could even bring it to a complete stop at the curb. Lori took one look at the young woman and saw that Beth was furious. Lori recognized the look.

She began to storm away but Daryl cut off the bike and climbed off. "Beth!" He called her name and then taking a few steps towards her, he reached out and snatched her arm, stopping her.

Lori bristled at the sight and prepared herself to go out there and tell him to take his hand off of her but he removed his hand as soon as Beth spun around towards him. He didn't say anything and Lori watched as Beth seemed to be the one doing all of the talking, her hands in animated movement. Daryl shook his head at something she was saying and Lori's eyes widened as Beth reached up and pushed him in the chest. He moved back a step but didn't say anything and didn't do anything to stop her. Beth Greene had just put her hands on a Dixon and there was no retaliation.

Beth lifted her hands to her face, wiping her cheeks, and Lori knew she was probably crying now though she was facing away, her back turned towards the center and she couldn't see Beth's face. She could only assume.

Daryl stared at her for a moment and then he stepped towards her again, his hand lifting. Lori tensed but then she saw Daryl simply touch her cheek, saying something and then nodding at something Beth said in response. He then took another step closer and his lips brushed across Beth's forehead before he dropped his head, eyes lowering to the ground.

Beth took one of his hand in both of hers and began pulling him forward, towards the building. Lori stood there, frozen, her eyes slightly wide as Beth pulled Daryl straight into the center, into the main hallway where Lori stood in front of the front office. Her smile was big and bright, happy again, the tears completely gone from her eyes, and she smiled at Lori before looking back at Daryl, watching him slowly come up to stand behind her. He glanced to Lori and then looked down again almost as if he was too shy to meet her eyes.

"Lori," Beth said, her smile never fading. "I'd like you to meet my husband, Daryl Dixon."

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	3. Daryl

**After last night's episode, I have to put "Cigarette Dreams" and "Playing House" on hold. I'm so sorry. I can't write about the prison or funeral home after last night. I want to get as far away from everything this bullshit show and its bullshit writing chose to be and write something for Beth and Daryl that was good and sweet. Thank you to those who will want to still read this one. Each chapter is going to be from someone's POV - this one from Daryl's. **

**And I know everyone has been asking. The next chapter is Beth's POV and how they met. **

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**Part Three.**

Daryl Dixon had always been a light sleeper and it was the middle of the night but he woke when he heard the car approaching. The headlights swept across the dark bedroom through the window blinds and Daryl lifted his head to look at the alarm clock on the nightstand on the other side of Beth. It was just a few minutes past two. It was probably Merle, drunk or high. Or both. And he sighed heavily at the thought of having to deal with his brother right now.

Beth stirred and murmured something, shifting in his arms. "What is it?" She asked, still mostly asleep.

"Someone's comin'," he said, slowly pulling his arm out from underneath Beth that she was sleeping on. "Stay in here," he then told her before getting out of the bed.

He made sure she was covered with the blankets and then tugged on his jeans. He went to the closet where he kept one of his guns and he took it down from the top shelf, putting it in the back of his jeans and making sure his shirt covered it.

He looked back to Beth, still lying in their bed, before stepping from the room, closing the door behind him. The car had stopped and he heard the door open. Without waiting for the person to get here, Daryl unlocked the front door and stepped onto the front porch, hiding his surprise when he saw it was Sheriff Grimes. The man wasn't in his uniform though and he wasn't driving his patrol car. The man looked exhausted and Daryl watched with a blank face as the man approached him.

"I need your help," Rick said. "My boy…" he exhaled a shaky breath as if he was trying to keep himself from crying.

Daryl didn't say anything. He turned and went back into the house and heard Rick following behind. He turned on the lamp and grabbed his boots, sitting down to tug them on.

"He was playing with his friend, Patrick, near the Yellow Jacket Creek, and Patrick had to get home but Carl wanted to stay. That was almost six hours ago," Rick said, his voice breaking. "Everyone knows you're the best tracker in the area."

Daryl stood up and went to the small closet next to the front door, pulling out his crossbow and slinging it across his back. Rick looked at it with slightly wide eyes but didn't ask about it.

The bedroom door opened and Beth stood there, her eyes squinting at the light in the room. She wore underwear and one of his tee-shirts that hung down her thighs and the collar slipped off of one shoulder and nothing else. "Daryl?" She said his name but then she saw Rick standing there as well, becoming completely awake within seconds at the sight of him. "What's going on?"

"Nothin'," Daryl finally spoke and went up to her. "I gotta help the Sheriff with something. His kid's missin," he then told her in a low voice.

Beth's eyes widened. "Carl?"

Daryl nodded. "I'll be back," he said and she nodded and he almost leaned down to give her a peck goodbye but he remembered that the Sheriff was standing there.

Beth looked up at him and seemed to read his mind and she nodded slightly. "Be careful," she said and he reached, resting his hand on her hip for a moment, giving it a squeeze, before he stepped back. He remembered the gun in the back of his jeans and he took it out, handing it to her.

Rick asked if they should drive to where Carl was last seen but Daryl shook his head and turning on his flashlight, he led the way through the woods, towards Yellow Jacket Creek. Rick had his own flashlight and walked behind him, close but not close enough to crowd him. Daryl didn't say anything and he didn't expect Rick to say anything either. They didn't have much to say to one another and Daryl wasn't a big talker anyway. He knew what Rick mostly thought of him anyway.

He looked down to the ground as they walked, studying the leaves, finding faint footprints that looked small enough to be Carl's. He stopped and crouched down, shining the light for a closer look and Rick was right behind him.

"I don't see anything," Rick said.

Daryl grunted and stood up. "You want a lesson in trackin' or you want to find your boy?" He asked.

Rick was quiet after that and they continued on their way. A part of him wasn't sure why he was helping the Sheriff. He doubted the favor would be returned if he needed help with something. Course, he had Beth now and he didn't need anyone else. He knew that girl would do anything to help him if he needed it and he still wasn't exactly used to having someone in his corner all of the time but he knew it was definitely something he _could_ get used to.

Carl's trail wasn't hard to follow at all – not to him at least. As they arrived at the bank of the creek, he held the flashlight in between his teeth and slid down the muddy side.

"Carl?" Rick called out to him.

A moment passed. "Dad?"

Daryl shined the light down into the exposed roots of a tree the banks of the creek had eroded. He saw the boy standing waist high in the water, shivering and dirty. When he saw Daryl, he held up his hands as if he was going to shoot him.

"I was trying to catch frogs…" the boy started to explain. "And I got caught…"

Daryl didn't say anything, dropping into the cold water and wading his way beneath the tree roots. He saw that Carl's body was moving but his left leg wasn't. It was probably caught in the roots beneath the water.

He handed Carl the crossbow. "Hold that."

Carl nodded and watched as Daryl put the flashlight back between his teeth and then dunked himself beneath the water. As suspected, Carl's foot was jammed and it took him a few minutes and a little wiggling and tugging at it but he finally got it free and he pushed himself above the surface.

"Thanks," Carl smiled at him as if this happening was no big deal.

"Carl," Rick hugged him tightly once they were both back on the shore, wet but safe.

Without a word, Daryl took his crossbow back, slinging it onto his back, and began walking the way back towards home. Rick and Carl were behind him, Carl apologizing to Rick and knowing what he did was stupid and was mom going to kill him? Probably, Rick answered.

As they came through the trees to the house, he saw the lights on inside and he wasn't surprised that Beth hadn't gone back to sleep. When he came through the back door, Beth was right there and his wife was warm and soft and dry as she threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tight.

"You're wet," she then stated the obvious, pulling her head back, her arms remaining around him. She then looked behind him. "Carl," she smiled and then looked back at Daryl. "You found him."

Daryl grunted and Beth pulled back from him after giving him one of her soft smiles.

"Towels," she said and then hurried away towards the bathroom.

Daryl looked back to Rick and Carl lingering in the doorway and without a word, he stepped through the kitchen to return his crossbow to the closet and to kick off his wet boots. Beth returned and handed a towel to Daryl before handing one to Carl.

"Thank you, Beth," Rick said. Rick then looked at Daryl and cleared his throat. "And thank you, Daryl."

Daryl didn't say anything as he rubbed the towel over his head.

Beth smiled at the Sheriff and his son. "It's super late but would you like some hot chocolate?" She asked, already moving towards the kitchen.

"Yeah!" Carl's eyes gleamed and Rick stepped aside to call Lori.

Daryl went into the bedroom to change into dry clothes and he heard Beth chatter to Carl out in the other room, asking if he was alright and if he was able to catch any frogs. Daryl didn't care about going back out there. He was tired and he had found the kid and they didn't need him anymore.

He fell back onto their old bed, mattress springs squeaking in protest beneath him, closed his eyes and promptly fell asleep.

When he woke again, it was dawn and there were birds chirping outside. Beth's head was on his chest, her arm tossed over his middle, and when he started to wake up, Beth felt him stir and she woke up, too.

He didn't say anything, just looked at her, and she gave him a small smile.

"Rick wasn't able to thank you enough last night for what you did," she said softly.

He shrugged a shoulder. "'S no big deal," he said.

"It is, Daryl. It is a big deal," she said. "You didn't even hesitate in going out there." She paused then and her hand rested on his cheek as she sat herself up slightly so she could look into his eyes. "You're a good man, Daryl Dixon."

He shrugged again, not really wanting to talk about it anymore, and Beth knew that. She fell quiet and kept her head on his chest and he listened to the birds chirping, his fingers playing with the ends of her soft blonde hair.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	4. Beth

**Thank you so, so much for all of the reviews and love you have been showing this story. My eyes hurt from crying most of the day yesterday but writing this is something good for me to be doing. I want to give Daryl and Beth a love story they deserve. I plan on writing POV chapters for Herschel, Merle and Maggie and if there is someone in particular you would like to read, just let me know!**

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**Part Four.**

It had been a year. A year of sneaking off to his house for kisses and talks and rides late at night on his motorcycle, her arms around his middle, holding him tight. A year of keeping it from everyone before he told her, a little awkwardly and tripping over his words as he struggled to find the right ones, that maybe they should make it something more between them.

She had known of Daryl Dixon. Of course she had. He was a Dixon and that name was known to everyone in town. She had never run into him before. Had never had a reason to. They didn't exactly run in the same social scenes and she was younger and he was older and there was no reason for their paths to ever cross.

But then one day, she got a flat tire on the road off of the highway, a few miles away from her family's farm, and she had sighed, getting ready to start the trek home. Changing a flat tire was one of those things on the list she had been meaning to ask her daddy to show her but she hadn't gotten around to it yet and she swiftly cursed herself silently for her procrastination. She was an adult and there were just some things she had to know. Like how to change a flat tire. Instead, she had to walk the miles home to get her daddy.

Just as she began to walk, there was a rustling in the trees and a man stepped from them, dirty and scowling with a crossbow in his hands. He saw her and she saw him and she knew who it was instantly. Daryl Dixon.

He looked at her for a long moment and she waited for herself to be scared but it never came.

"Hi," she found herself giving him a smile instead. He blinked at her as if he was thinking she wasn't actually talking to him. She then found herself taking a step towards him. "Do you know how to change a flat?" She asked, only seconds later realizing that he did. He worked in one of the auto garages in town.

He didn't say a word. He just turned his head towards her car and walked towards it. She popped the trunk for him and he set his crossbow down as he dragged the spare out and the spare jack. She stood close, watching over his shoulder as he changed the flat, quickly and perfectly.

"Thank you so, so much," she smiled up at him as he stood up, picking up his crossbow again. He still didn't say anything and they stood there, looking at one another. "I'm Beth," she then said, giving him a small smile, almost feeling shy.

She held her hand out and it hung there between them for a minute. She didn't expect him to take it but she kept it out and was honestly surprised when he did. He shook it quickly, his grip light and barely there, and he then dropped his hand again. He didn't tell her his name. He didn't have to. She couldn't believe how handsome Daryl Dixon was. He was making her stomach clench almost painfully and yet, it was the most exciting feeling she could ever remember getting around a man.

She felt like Daryl Dixon was the first man she had ever been around.

He still didn't say anything and giving her a slight head nod, he turned and she watched as he headed across the road and disappeared into the woods there.

Two days later, she was pulling up to Daryl Dixon's house. She knew where he lived. Everyone knew where he lived. And as she got out of her car and heard the quietness around her, she understood perfectly why he chose to be out here. It was peaceful and for a moment, she felt as if she was the only person in the world. But then she heard the screen door open, squeaking on its hinges and then slapping shut again, and she turned to see Daryl standing on the front porch, staring at her.

She took a deep breath and instantly smiled at him, approaching him. "Hi," she said as if her being there was the most natural thing in the world. "I baked some chocolate chip cookies. I just wanted to thank you again for helping me the other day." She stood at the bottom of the steps and looked up at him and she felt that clenching again. She hadn't been able to stop thinking about him and had wanted to see him again but hadn't known how to until the idea of baking and bringing him something entered her mind. And something else. "I was hoping you could help me."

Daryl looked at her. "Car trouble again?" He asked. His voice was gruff and Beth was surprised at the shivers it gave her.

"Kind of…" Beth took another deep breath. "I was hoping you could show me some stuff. Car stuff. I don't know anything and I think it's important I know at least some basic maintenance." She paused and looked at him, her hands clutching the container of cookies. He didn't say anything, just stared at her, and she wondered what he thought of her. She couldn't read him; his face completely blank. "Would you be willing to show me some things?" She asked.

He didn't say anything and she wasn't sure what to do. She didn't feel nervous or scared. She just felt unsure. She looked at him and he looked at her and he still didn't say anything. The wave of disappointment overwhelmed her, felt like it was crushing her chest, and she moved her eyes away. She slowly set the container of cookies down on the top step of the porch and then took a step back. She wasn't sure why she felt so disappointed. She and Daryl Dixon didn't know one another. At all. It wasn't as if he owed her anything.

She turned to head back towards her car but then she heard him.

"Fine."

She turned instantly back towards him and looked at him and broke into a smile.

Over the next few days, after work, she would drive to Daryl's house and he would show her the simple things. How to change the windshield wipers. How to add more wiper fluid. How to change a flat tire. And finally, how to change the oil. That had been a disaster and she had laughed, pulling herself out from under the car, sitting up. Daryl had crouched down in front of her, his lips twitching in an almost smile, and he pulled a rag from his back pocket and began to wipe at the oil on her cheek.

She stared up at him as he moved across her cheek gently. His own eyes stared into hers and there it was. That clenching again. The Dixons had such a terrible reputation in town but the past few days spent with Daryl, she hadn't seen any of what was said about those with that last name. He was quiet – practically mute sometimes – and kept a certain distance between them at all times. Not physically – he had touched her a few times to guide her hands as he showed her something and touching her now – but there always seemed to be something keeping him in; keeping him from exposing all of himself.

She looked at him and didn't believe the rumors – not about him. He worked as a mechanic and if he wasn't working or hunting, he was always home. He didn't have time to deal drugs or get into drunken brawls at bars. He didn't even seem the type. How could a man be willing to teach her about cars when he absolutely didn't have to? She paid him with things she made in the kitchen since he refused money. She brought him cookies and brownies and even a chicken pot pie. And each time she came again, he handed her the Tupperware container, always cleaned spotless.

Beth knew it wasn't much but it was one of those little things that just stood out to her and showed her what kind of person he was underneath the dirt and last name.

She was the sort of girl who believed in love at first sight but she never expected it to happen to her. But sitting there on the ground with Daryl Dixon in front of her, cleaning oil smears from her cheek, she looked at him and knew that she loved him. Just like that. She was in love with Daryl Dixon.

She wasn't the sort to hide things. It was impossible for her to. Her eyes always gave away everything.

She stared into his eyes and he looked into hers and slowly, his hand rubbing her cheek stopped. She knew he wasn't going to say anything so she didn't say anything either. Instead, her hands slowly lifted and he seemed to freeze as she slid them onto his cheeks. And then, tilting her head up and craning her neck, she pushed her lips forward to his. She wasn't expecting him to kiss her back and for a moment, he was just there, not moving, her lips slowly moving against his. Finally, when she felt the slightest pressure of his lips pressing back to hers, Beth almost sagged with relief and her arms slid around his neck, pulling him closer.

…

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><p>He apologized for the house being so messy. It was but she didn't care. He apologized for not having sheets on the bed. He only had a comforter and one pillow but she didn't care about that either. She loved his house and his bed. It was small and cozy and his bed was warm and smelled like him. The woods and the earth and oil and something entirely Daryl.<p>

She came over as often as she could and spent the night when she could and for a while, each time she showed up, she held her breath and watched him, worried and beginning to convince herself that she was just annoying him. But when she couldn't stay the night and had to get home, he would look so disappointed and Beth knew she wasn't imagining it.

"You can take your shirt off," she told him after their fourth time together.

Daryl didn't say anything or make a move to. He just laid there on his back, staring up at the ceiling, and Beth didn't say anything else.

She heard a soft rain outside had begun to fall, tapping the roof above their heads. She sat up slowly, looking at the clock on the nightstand and reaching for her shirt from the floor. She slipped it on over her head and then began the search for her underwear. She pulled them on and then went to the window, looking out. With the rain and no moon, everything outside was pitch black. She heard rustling behind her and she turned, seeing Daryl getting out of the bed, tugging his shirt off. She could hardly see him.

"You won't wanna be comin' round here anymore if you see me without a shirt," he said softly and her brow furrowed, not understanding why he would say that.

But then he came to her and turned so his back was to her. She choked on a gasp in her throat and the bedroom may have been dark but she could see the dark lash scars marring his back. He just stood there and didn't say a word but she didn't need him to explain or tell her the stories. She looked at the scars and it was all she needed to know. She knew he would tell her when he was ready. If he ever was.

He flinched slightly when she lifted her hands and touched one of the scars and he seemed to be holding his breath as her lips then followed, brushing across every scar she saw there.

That night, she showed him her scar, too, and she was the one to hold her breath now as he held her wrist and kissed it.

Two nights after that, she told him she loved him. She loved him from the first moment she saw him and she expected him to scoff when she told him that but he didn't. He simply stared at her for a long moment and she kept her eyes locked with his, never looking away from him. She would never be ready to look away.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	5. Maggie

**I don't think I can explain how much the response to this story means to me. I began writing it because I thought it would be fun and then it became something I _needed_ to write - something so different from the show but with the characters I love. I had no idea that so many would also need a story like this. I'm so glad I could write this and I'm so glad so many of you are loving it. **

**This chapter is Maggie's and if you read _Fire in the Blood_, you know I'm not the biggest fan of Maggie. I tried to write her in character though - stubborn and protective. Hershel will be the next POV chapter. **

**PS - yes, I will have chapters by people who have already had POV chapters and I imagine Beth and Daryl's house to be like the moonshine house. Sorry for this huge author's note!**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Five.**

Maggie Greene stood in the doorway of the classroom, watching as Beth cleaned up a morning art project the children had done – snowmen and snowflakes made from white construction paper. Some of the kids were gone already – their parents just working in the mornings – and the rest were taking their afternoon nap. Maggie watched as Beth hummed to herself, not noticing her sister standing there, until Maggie cleared her throat.

Beth spun around and burst into a smile the instant she saw her. "Maggie!" She came rushing over to her and hugged her as if they hadn't seen one another in so long.

And it had been a long time. Maggie admitted she hadn't been that eager to see her sister – not since she had run off one weekend months earlier and changed herself from Beth Greene to Beth Dixon. Maggie still felt sick when she thought of her baby sister having that last name; of living with Daryl Dixon in his shack in the woods where he probably cooked meth and slapped her around.

"What are you doing here?" Beth asked.

"It's your birthday, silly," Maggie couldn't help but smile. "I'm here to take you out to lunch. Tradition, remember?"

Beth looked at her for a moment, surprise evident in her eyes, and Maggie couldn't exactly blame her for being surprised. It wasn't as if Maggie wanted to cut herself from her sister's life but her sister now had a life she didn't like or approve of. She had tried to talk to their dad about it but Hershel Greene would just shake his head and remind her that Bethy was an adult capable of making her own decisions.

Maggie couldn't believe that their dad was just going along with this. She couldn't believe that he was letting his youngest daughter run off and be a wife to a Dixon.

He was getting older. Maybe she had to start worrying about him losing his mind.

Beth smiled then and nodded slightly. "I can't stay away that long. Maybe just to the diner?" She suggested and Maggie nodded. "Let me just tell Lori," she said and went to the cabinet in the room to get her purse and coat.

When she stretched herself up on her toes to reach her things on the top shelf, the hem of the dress she was wearing crept up her thighs and Maggie's eyes instantly saw the ugly bruise on the side of her upper thigh – blue and black and purple.

"Beth, what the hell happened?" Maggie demanded. Beth looked at her, eyes wide, surprised and clearly confused as to what she was talking about. "The bruise, Beth. Where did you get the bruise?"

"Oh!" She relaxed now that she knew what Maggie was talking about and she laughed a little, her cheeks flushed as if embarrassed that it had been seen. "I got up last night to use the bathroom and I tripped over Daryl's boots and I knocked myself right into the dresser. You know how much of a klutz I am."

Maggie stared at her, crossing her arms over her chest. She honestly didn't believe a word Beth was saying. Sure. She just so happened to trip over a pair of boots and fall into a dresser. And calling herself a klutz, wasn't that what most women being beaten by their men called themselves while trying to hide what was really going on? Her baby sister was being beaten by her husband and she was blaming herself.

"Why are you protecting him?" Maggie demanded.

Beth's mouth fell open slightly at that – as if shocked. But then her lips closed, pursing together, and her eyes narrowed slightly. "I'm not protecting him because _nothing_ happened," she said in a quiet, yet strong, voice.

"You have this huge bruise, Beth," Maggie pointed out to her.

"On my _thigh_, Maggie," Beth snapped. "My husband doesn't hit me." She was glaring at her and her entire body was coiled and tight but Maggie didn't care.

She had been holding all of this in for so long now. Beth had been too young but Maggie remembered Anne Dixon, Daryl's mom, walking through town with bruises all over her body. Her husband beat the shit out of her and everyone knew it and no one knew why she didn't leave him. She finally got away but only by burning herself and the house up with a careless cigarette. The Dixons were bad news. They had bad blood or something. Will Dixon had been a drunk and an asshole and Merle Dixon seemed to be pretty much the mirror image of his father. Who wouldn't think that Daryl Dixon was the same?

"I don't believe you," Maggie ground out.

Beth stared at her for a moment and then shook her head. Maggie saw such a wave of sadness roll into her sister's eyes then. "I don't care if you believe me or not, Maggie. It's the truth. Daryl has never hit me and I know he never will. Daryl loves me. I know you don't like him but you can't talk about my husband like that."

"Your husband is a Dixon," Maggie said.

"So am I," Beth said. She then exhaled a deep sigh. "I'm happy, Maggie, and you don't know him at all. You should go."

Maggie stared at her for another minute. "Fine. Happy birthday," she said before turning on her heel and storming from the room.

Maggie spent the rest of the day in a furious tornado, wanting to just scream. Her sister was a Dixon and admitted it and almost sounded as if she was proud of it. It only further showed how young and naïve Beth was; that she would be proud of that last name and not understand how terrible the family was she just married into.

Her sister was beautiful and sweet and Daryl was older and clearly taking advantage of her. Why couldn't Beth see that?

Hours later, she finally felt calm again and she took a series of deep breaths as she followed the narrow road that led to Daryl's house. She would probably never call it Daryl _and_ Beth's house. She knew Beth probably wouldn't want to see her but they were sisters and it was her birthday today and Maggie had her present in the backseat she still had to give her.

She parked and taking the wrapped box, she shut the door and started heading to the front porch. Just as she raised a fist to knock however, she heard laughter inside that made her stop. Hiding her presence for the time being, she pushed herself up on her toes and looked inside through the square window of the front door. Their house was small and she saw them in the living room.

Beth was sitting on the coffee table, wearing a tee-shirt that was clearly his, looking so large on her small frame. She was holding a paper plate with a single cupcake on it with a candle stuck in it on her lap. He was kneeling on the floor in front of her, wearing just jeans with no shirt. Even inside his house, he looked so dirty.

"It's not bad, I swear," Beth said, laughter still in her voice.

"I ain't never baked anythin' before," Daryl said and she leaned in, a hand curving around the back of his neck and she kissed him.

"It's the best cupcake I've ever had," she smiled at him.

"Shoulda just bought one from the store," he began to say but she swiftly shook her head, cutting him off, and kissed him again.

"It's the best cupcake I've ever had," she told him again, resting her forehead to his.

Maggie watched as his hands slid up, resting on either side of her neck, thumbs running along her jaw, and then he kissed her. Beth smiled against his lips for a moment before sinking into the kiss, her arms wrapping around his neck.

Dropping down to her feet and backing away from the door, Maggie left the present for Beth on the front porch and returned to her car.

When she drove back to her family's farmhouse, she stayed in the car for a few extra minutes, needing that time, her fingers curled around the wheel and she focused on her breathing. Daryl Dixon had baked – or attempted to bake – her sister a cupcake for her birthday. Daryl fucking Dixon, redneck white trash extraordinaire.

Maggie leaned her head back against her seat and released a deep breath. She could still hear Beth's soft laughter and the way she had smiled as he had kissed her. Her sister was so happy and so in love and Maggie knew she had to start supporting her or else, she and Beth would never have a relationship again.

Maggie knew that if she made Beth make a choice between her sister and her husband, she would lose.

But how could she support Beth with this? She was married to Daryl Dixon and just thinking about it gave Maggie a painful knot twisting in her stomach.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	6. Hershel

**I have so many more ideas for this story - POVs and things to be witnessed between Daryl and Beth - I think this one is going to be a long one. Writing it makes me happy and I am trying so hard to stay happy and live forever in this AU. Thank you to everyone who wants to live here with me :) Merle's POV will be part seven. (PS - I have posted a couple pictures on my profile of Norman and Emily that are really my inspiration for this particular Daryl and Beth.)**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Six. **

Daryl was a man who could easily live off the land. He was a talented and skilled hunter and when Beth married him, she knew she would have to learn what to do with all of the meat he would bring home. He had a deep freezer in the backyard against the back of the house with a padlock where he kept the meat after he skinned and cleaned whatever animal he brought home.

That was where Hershel found him. He was dirty from being in the woods for the past few hours and when he looked up and saw Hershel come around the side of the house, he took the rag from the back pocket of his jeans and wiped at his hands.

"Catch anything good?" Hershel asked.

"Couple a rabbits," Daryl answered, looking and focusing on his hands. "Beth wit' you?" He asked.

"She had to run to the store for a few things. I told her I wanted to come and talk with my son-in-law about something," Hershel said, looking at Daryl as Daryl nodded his head slightly and didn't look at him.

Hershel remembered – and probably always would – the evening four months earlier when Beth brought this man home. It was a Friday evening and Hershel and his wife, Annette, were in the living room, watching the nightly news, when they heard the roar of a motorcycle nearing the house. Looking outside the window, he saw two people and when the bike stopped, the person riding in the back stood up, removing their helmet and he saw it was Beth. It was only after she came inside with the man who clearly owned the bike did Hershel see that it was Daryl Dixon.

Neither Hershel nor Annette had any idea what to do or say as their daughter stood there, smiling and blushing and her fingers interlaced with Daryl's. The man stood beside her and didn't say a word. He was looking at Hershel and yet, Hershel saw a look in his eyes that almost seemed hesitant; as if he wanted to look away quickly but couldn't.

Beth announced to her parents – rather casually – that she and Daryl were going to be getting married.

"What? When?" Annette had gasped.

"Tonight if possible," Beth had said and Hershel noted her smile hadn't dropped since she came inside. If anything, it was only growing bigger and brighter.

He noted the way in which Beth and Daryl stood with one another. The man was clearly uncomfortable being in their house in front of her parents and yet, his hand seemed accustomed to being held in Beth's. Hershel wondered how long her daughter had been holding hands with Daryl Dixon – and doing other things as well.

"Are you pregnant?" Hershel asked, straight forward.

He was surprised to see the tips of Daryl's ears turning red, as if embarrassed. Hershel had known Will Dixon and he knew Merle Dixon and embarrassment wasn't something that seemed to run through the Dixon blood.

And maybe that's why it was okay with him. Yes, he didn't like that his daughter had been sneaking around and involved with a man older than her but he couldn't exactly condemn Beth for being twenty-one and dating a thirty-six year old man when he was so much older than his own wife, Beth's mother. Monkey see, monkey do. He looked at Beth and he couldn't remember a time when his daughter had looked happier. She stood there beside Daryl Dixon and it looked as if she was glowing. And he looked at Daryl and the man was quiet and clearly shy and Hershel didn't know what it was but he looked at him and just got a feeling about him.

After he gave them his blessing and he had calmed Annette down as she sputtered beside him, Beth and Daryl went off for the weekend and when they returned, Beth Greene was now Beth Dixon and Hershel found himself with a son-in-law.

Since they had gotten married, he had lost count of how many people had come up to him to ask him what the hell he was going to do about Beth and Daryl's marriage. How could he just let his daughter be married to a Dixon? Even Maggie had raised a fit and demanded he do something. He and Annette remained quiet on the matter though. Both were able to see how happy their daughter was with her husband and both had taken the extra moment to look at Daryl Dixon and see something more to him than just what his last name told them. He was good to their daughter.

Hershel stood there now and looked at Daryl as Daryl continued looking down to the ground. It amazed Hershel how shy and quiet his son-in-law was. It almost amused him. Who would have ever thought?

"My daughter loves you more than anything in this world," Hershel began. "And she understands why you won't come with her when we have these family dinners but I know she wants you there with her."

Daryl shook his head, finally looking at him. "Like you said. Beth understands."

Hershel nodded. "Yes, but that doesn't mean she still can't want something."

Daryl sighed. "I ain't goin', Hershel," he said. "I 'preciate you invitin' me every week but I don't think anyone would be comfortable with me there."

"Your wife would be comfortable and so would Annette and I," Hershel said. "Who else matters?"

Daryl sighed again and shook his head. "I ain't goin' and gettin' glared at for an entire meal."

"I've talked with Maggie about that," Hershel assured him.

Daryl just smirked and shook his head again before turning and opening the back screen door, disappearing into the house. Hershel followed. He knew Daryl and Beth didn't have a lot of money. Daryl was a mechanic and Beth worked at a daycare center and he knew they very much lived month to month but they never asked anyone for money and Hershel knew better than to offer. Each time he saw his daughter, Beth proved that a person didn't need money to be happy.

Hershel sat himself down at the kitchen table and Daryl took two glasses down from the cabinet, going to the refrigerator. Hershel saw a couple of bottles of beer on the top shelf but Daryl knew better than to offer him one. Instead, he took a jug of pink lemonade out and Hershel smiled when Daryl poured some into the two glasses. His Bethy had always loved pink lemonade.

"Thank you," Hershel smiled and took a sip as Daryl sat down across from him. "It would mean a lot to me and to Beth if you came. Annette and I have these family dinners every Sunday because we want our _whole_ family with us."

"I ain't fit to sit at your table, Hershel," he said quietly.

"Son, that's bullshit," Hershel said. "Now, I can say this with absolute authority about Beth as her father. You are the best thing to ever happen to my daughter and I know being married to you isn't the easiest thing in the world for her, considering what most in this town seem to think and say about you." Daryl stared at him and said nothing. "But she loves you and you coming to dinner with her would mean more to her than you understand."

Daryl didn't say anything, running a finger back and forth along the worn wood of the table. They heard a car pull up in front of the house and Daryl got up, going to the front door. He went outside and Hershel turned in his seat to look out the front window. Beth was smiling and chattering away as Daryl took the brown paper shopping bag from her arm.

Hershel drained the rest of his pink lemonade and stood up, placing the glass in the sink, before heading outside onto the front porch.

"Hi, daddy," Beth smiled at him as if she hadn't just seen him for dinner.

"Hi, doodlebug," he smiled in return and kissed her head. "I tried," he then whispered once Daryl had gone inside and her smile faded a bit, a faint sadness creeping into her eyes that only those who truly knew her would be able to see.

She sighed softly and nodded. "Maybe someday, it'll happen," she said and Hershel patted her on the arm. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"Daryl already got me something. I should get home to your mother," he said.

He and Beth went back into the house.

"Daryl, Sunday, five o'clock," he said.

Daryl didn't say anything; just shook his hand.

The next Sunday, Annette set the dining room table with five place settings as always though Hershel knew there would only be four that evening for dinner. One at either end of the table, one plate on one side of the table for Maggie and then two on the other side for Beth and Daryl. And at the end of the evening, that one plate would be returned to the cabinet, still clean and unused.

It was a few minutes after five and he was helping Annette pull the roast from the oven. They both heard it at the same time and looked at one another, both clearly surprised. The roar of the motorcycle grew closer and Hershel looked to his wife and she looked at him and they both smiled.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	7. Merle

**Thank you so much, as always, for the reviews and suggestions! I read them all and I have a list of POV chapters to write that people have requested. Hopefully, I'll be able to write them all. Writing Merle made me so nervous, I can't even explain. I had never written him before and I know how he sounds and talks and what kind of person he is and yet, this is the chapter I am most unsure of. That is why it is also the shortest. Hopefully, if I give him another POV chapter later in the story, it will be better. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Seven.**

His brother had sure gone and married himself a hot little number. Her tits were small but perky and she had a fantastic ass – one he had no problems with admiring as she walked away from him towards the kitchen and for the first time in their lives, he was a bit jealous of his little brother for being able to hit that whenever he wanted. He noticed she was walking fine though so his brother didn't seem to be doing it as often as he should. Merle smirked at that. Typical Daryl.

She had been playing the piano when he had driven up and knocked on the door. It was Saturday and she was clearly relaxing, wearing pajama shorts and one of Daryl's long-sleeve plaid shirts. Her blonde hair was thrown up in a ponytail and Merle raked his eyes over her exposed skin. She was pale and sure looked smooth. Merle nearly licked his lips.

"Would you like anything to drink?" Beth asked politely.

Merle grinned and took a seat on the couch. Such a good little wife Daryl had.

"Got any whisky?" He asked.

Beth shook her head. "We don't keep hard liquor in the house. We have beer."

"I'll take one of those," he nodded and she opened the refrigerator, taking out a bottle and bringing it across the room to where he didn't move from the couch. He sat up and took it, making sure his fingers touched hers. "Thanks, darlin'."

Beth nodded and took a few steps back. "I'm not sure when Daryl will be back. You know him and hunting," she smiled a little at him and Merle grinned at her.

"Sure I do. Taught him everythin' he knows," Merle said.

Beth's smile remained but tightened a little and he could tell she didn't believe him.

Merle took a guzzle of beer and sank down lower into the couch. "So when are you and that little brother of mine goin' to make me an uncle?"

"Oh," she laughed a little and her cheeks reddened at that. "We've talked about it but we're not actively pursuing it right now. We just got married and we want to enjoy it being just the two of us for a while."

"Always thought somethin' was off with my brother. To be out in the woods instead of bein' here with his young pretty wife…" he sat up and focused his eyes on her. Beth shifted her weight from one foot to another and crossed her arms over her stomach. "I wouldn't be too eager to let you outta my sight," he said and stared at her, his eyes taking in her body.

"There's nothing wrong with your brother," she said, staring right at him.

"You say that just 'cause you never had the other Dixon to compare him to," Merle grinned and Beth shifted her weight again, her back stiff and her eyes never leaving him. She was uncomfortable and Merle almost would have felt guilty but it was just too much damn fun making her squirm, he realized.

He still didn't know how Daryl had gotten this girl to marry him; didn't know why Daryl had even wanted to get married; didn't know why he had chosen some church-going near jailbait girl as his wife. Girls like that were never any fun. He could just imagine how boring their sex was. Maybe he should take Daryl out somewhere for a bit of fun.

"Merle," Beth then sighed. "Don't be gross."

Merle grinned at that before taking another guzzle of beer.

"So, what's a girl like you doin' with my brother?" He asked.

"Why can't it be what's a guy like him doing with me?" She asked, her eyes looking towards the door as if keeping watch for Daryl to return.

Merle smirked. "Don't know if you realize this, darlin', but there are people thinkin' he's holdin' you prisoner up in here."

"People are morons," Beth murmured quietly.

He laughed at that. "Ain't that the truth? You're too clean for 'im."

Beth looked at him with that. "Too clean? What is that supposed to mean?"

Merle guzzled his beer and waved a hand over her. "Too clean," he said again.

"Want me to go outside and roll around in the mud?" She rolled her eyes.

"If you wanna do that, I ain't gonna stop you. Hell, I'll watch," he grinned.

They both looked when the front screen door squeaked open and Daryl stepped in, crossbow strapped onto his back. When he saw Beth standing there, Merle saw the small smile that instantly came across his baby brother's face. He was such a sap, Merle nearly snorted. Disgusting.

Daryl then saw Merle on the couch. "Hey," he looked at him and then to Beth.

"'Bout time, little brother," Merle said. He sat up, chugged the rest of the beer and then placed the bottle none-too-gently onto the coffee table. He stood up and stretched with a grunt. "Am I stayin' for dinner?" He asked.

Daryl sighed but didn't say anything. He looked to Beth and she looked to him.

Merle chuckled. "Gotta ask your old lady permission, huh?"

"Shut up, Merle," Daryl muttered.

Merle just grinned.

Beth sighed then and looked to him. "It's Saturday. Daryl and I do a certain thing on Saturdays…"

"Ah, gotcha," Merle's grin stretched wider. "How long does that take? Want me to wait outside for the next five minutes?"

Daryl sighed again. "Bagged a deer. Gonna go clean it," he said.

Merle watched as Daryl walked past Beth on his way out the back door. He paused beside her and looked down at her as she tilted her head up and looked up at him. They didn't say anything to one another and seemed to be talking to one another with just their eyes. Daryl then leaned in and pressed his lips to Beth's forehead, leaving them resting there for a moment before he pulled his head back and Beth smiled up at him. They still didn't say anything and Daryl headed out the back door.

Merle and Beth looked at one another but for once, Merle didn't say anything and he followed after Daryl, stepping outside where Daryl had dropped the buck. Daryl had gone into the shed and he came out again with two pairs of gloves, handing one to Merle. He didn't speak as he took his knife and crouched down in front of the deer.

For the first time in a long time, probably ever, Merle felt uncomfortable. It had never bothered him before – coming over here unannounced. He did it constantly and Daryl never said anything about it. He may have grumbled something under his breath but he never told Merle to get the hell out. And even if he had, it wasn't as if Merle would listen.

But now, Merle was thinking he should go. He shouldn't have just dropped in. He kept forgetting his brother had a wife now and that usually wouldn't have mattered much but…

He didn't hate Beth. He actually liked her as much as he could. There were hints of her being a real spitfire. He didn't really understand her and Daryl being together and he could just clap his little brother on the back for bagging himself such a hot piece.

Merle wasn't as stupid as most thought he was. He definitely wasn't smart but he wasn't some dumb fuck either and what he had just seen between his brother and his wife, it was something he had never seen before and he didn't know where Daryl had. He knew it was something different. Something that could be good.

"Where'd you learn that?" Merle asked, still standing, as Daryl had begun making the first cut into the deer.

Daryl didn't stop his work and didn't look up. "From you, Merle. Learned everthin' from you," he said and it sounded as if he was reciting the answer he thought he was supposed to say.

Merle swallowed and shook his head. "No, you didn'."

…

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><p><strong>Thank you very much for reading and please review!<strong>


	8. Daryl - Part II

**My dog woke me up to be let out and I couldn't get back to sleep so I was able to finish the next POV. I hope it makes some sense. The next part will be Beth's POV and then I have a few more characters to get through. I actually have a Zach chapter brainstormed which I'm excited to write. Thank you for everyone who is reading and reviewing on this story. The immense response to it has taken me aback and it makes me excited to write and update it for everyone so we can all live in such a happy AU place. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Eight.**

She moaned softly in his ear as he pressed his face to the side of her throat, licking and nipping at the slightly sweaty and delicate skin he found there. Her fingers tunneled through his hair, fisting it, lifting her hips to meet his thrusts, and one of Daryl's hand dropped down to the outside of her thigh, gripping it tightly as he thrust faster between them. She gasped his name and arched her back and held onto him as he sped up.

Their bed was old and it creaked beneath them with their movements. It sounded as if it was threatening to break beneath them but Daryl nor Beth were worried. They had tested this bed plenty of times before and it had yet to fall apart on them. Their furniture wasn't the best. Worn and second-hand, all bought from thrift stores and the Salvation Army. He had gotten her the piano from an estate sale – a beaten up, upright Kimball that was in desperate need of a tune but when he had showed it to her, Beth had gasped and threw her arms around him as if it was the most beautiful piano she had ever seen.

She fell apart beneath him, her body trembling as she gasped and moaned his name. That was one good thing about living in the woods with no one around them. Beth could get as loud as she wanted. He wasn't that far behind her, gripping her hip and slamming into her one more time, his hips jerking as he emptied himself inside of her, listening to her moan softly again at the sensation. He then collapsed on top of her, their sweaty skin sticking together, their bodies heaving up and down as they tried to catch their breaths. He felt Beth's hands on his back, fingers floating over his scars, but he had long ago stopped tensing when she did that.

Eventually, he slipped off of her, flopping onto his back beside her, mattress springs squeaking, and Beth rolled towards him, her head finding a resting place on his chest and his arm finding its way around her shoulders, holding her close. She nestled into his side and rested her hand on his chest, right over his heart.

He remembered their first time together. Definitely wasn't anything to brag about. She had kissed him on the ground next to her car as he showed her how to change the oil and he found himself kissing her back. Beth Greene was the sort of girl a guy like him shouldn't have even been looking at. Young and pretty and sweet and innocent but for some reason, she was up here in the woods with him and she had kissed him first. Maybe she was trying to piss her old man off. Maybe she was going through a rebellious stage and wanted to be a bad girl for a while.

No matter what the reason was though, Daryl found himself stumbling into the house with her and taking her straight to his bed.

He was no expert at sex and neither was Beth. It was a bit awkward and unsure and that first time was almost downright embarrassing for him. When she left a bit later, Daryl had expected to never see her again. But the next evening, she was there on his porch, knocking on his front door and when he opened it to her, she smiled at him, looking like someone truly happy to see him. He had never had anyone smile at him like that before and he almost didn't know what to do about it.

They had sex again and again and it was like what people said. Practice made perfect. And now he could make her scream his name out as she felt nothing but pleasure and lying there, he could still feel the slight trembles still quaking throughout her body.

Beth shifted her head, turning it so she could look up at him. "I need to check on dinner," she told him.

He nodded but his arms didn't remove themselves from her. This was why Saturdays had become his favorite day of the week. Neither had to work and they usually did what they had to do in the mornings so then in the afternoons and evenings, it could be this. Just the two of them in their bed with clothing being optional. He had never been the sort to lie around – always too much to do – but Beth had definitely showed him how damn good doing nothing could feel – especially with his wife's naked body pressed against his.

Sometimes, he still found himself not used to that at all. He, of all guys, had a wife and not only did he have one, but he was the one who suggested to her that maybe she could be something more. He wasn't sure entirely when it had happened but one night, she hadn't been able to spend the night and he had been watching her get her stuff together and he knew, right then, that he didn't want her to ever leave.

He didn't deserve Beth Greene. He, and everyone, knew that. He never would deserve her and she would forever be so much better than he ever could be. And he knew she loved him but most times, he still had no idea why she had ever married him and tied herself to a guy like him. She tried so hard to convince everyone that he wasn't a bad guy and he didn't know why she didn't just throw in the towel.

Beth pushed herself up just enough to kiss him at the corner of his mouth and she then pulled herself away, slipping from their bed and standing up. He remained lying in their bed, his head back against the pillow and looking at her small naked body. Their first few times together, he had worried about actually crushing her. When he had admitted that to Beth, she had laughed softly and pulled him right on top of her for another kiss.

She loved wearing his shirts and he watched as she pulled one on now, buttoning just a few of the buttons as it hung down to her mid-thighs. She turned and smiled at him and her hair was a mess, her lips were swollen, but she was the prettiest woman he had ever seen. His wife.

She left their room and moments later, he heard her in the kitchen. He lingered in bed for a minute longer before pulling himself out, grabbing a pair of sweatpants and tugging them on as he left the room.

She had baked bread earlier and she stood at the counter, cutting thick slices from the loaf, humming a quiet song to herself as she usually did. She had prepared rabbit stew and it sat, bubbling in a pot on the stove. She was startled when she caught sight of him coming up beside her and taking two bowls down from the cabinet.

"I was going to bring it to you," she said.

"You don't gotta be servin' me, Beth," he said as he ladled two large helpings into each of the bowls. "Smells good," he then told her and she smiled faintly at that.

He turned and set the bowls on the table and then went to the refrigerator, taking out two bottles of beer. Beth only ever drank on Saturdays and that was only one beer. She had gotten drunk once and it had been so terrible for her, she vowed she would never drink like that again. And she was such a lightweight, one beer usually could do the job.

She turned and set the plate of bread down on the table and then grabbed the butter and two spoons. They sat down at the table across from one another and he waited as she said a quick, quiet prayer to herself before they both began eating.

"Good? Not too much salt?" Beth asked, watching him.

"S'good," he said through a mouthful and she smiled, taking a piece of the bread.

He was quiet as he ate, as always, but he listened as Beth chatted away, talking about the daycare and telling stories about funny things the kids had done or said. There was little boy, Luke – one of Beth's favorites, he knew – who had asked her where babies had come from and she had told him he should ask Lori that instead.

Beth was quiet for a moment, taking another piece of bread. "Luke's parents don't seem to care for him that well," she commented softly.

"They prob'ly don't. He's a Ridgeway. Bein' a Ridgeway is almost as bad as bein' a Dixon," he said, getting up for another helping of the stew.

Beth frowned at him for the comment but he just shrugged as he sat down again.

"He's so sweet, though. I just don't understand…" she trailed off then and took a small sip of her stew. "I'm sorry. Let's talk about something else."

He looked at her for a moment, seeing her cheeks flush with embarrassment. "We don't gotta change the subject," he said. "Some parents are shitty. Some ain't."

Beth nodded and swallowed thickly. "I just hate thinking about what you went through."

"Yeah, but I made it," he said, keeping his eyes down as he ate his stew.

He knew he told Beth they could talk about it but the truth was, he really hated talking about this. That was why he never did. Beth was the only one to know anything – everything – and even that was with the most bare of facts.

Beth leaned over then and kissed his cheek. "Yes, you did," she said to him softly and smiled and she sounded so… _proud_ and Daryl had absolutely no idea how to respond so he didn't say anything. She settled back in her seat and took a small sip of beer. She looked at him for a moment. "I can't wait to see you as a daddy," she smiled.

And again, Daryl had no idea what to say to that. He knew Beth wanted a baby. He knew she wanted to be a mother; had always planned on that for herself and Daryl wasn't looking for her to have babies with any other man so he knew he would be a dad someday. It made him uncomfortable though to think about it.

Why the hell would Beth choose to have babies with him? Didn't she know what having Dixon blood in a person did to them? Their kids would be irrevocably fucked up in one way or another.

But as she always did, Beth had this unexplainable belief in him that he would never understand. Believing he was a good man. Believing he would make a good father. Girl was sure as hell crazy for believing all of that. But she was his crazy girl and sometimes, she could almost get him to believe, too.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	9. Beth - Part II

**This story kind of bounces all over the place - kind of telling a story but not really. It just shows different times in their relationship through so many different eyes. People keep asking me how long this will be. I honestly have no idea. I have a lot of POVs to get through and writing this just makes me so damn happy, to be honest. I don't want to end it anytime soon. Please leave me your requests and I will do my best to get to them. This is a story to make us all happy!**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Nine.**

There were a few wedding chapels in Atlanta and they just chose one at random to get married in. She knew he wasn't the type to wear a ring and that was okay. But when he slid a simple gold band onto her finger, she smiled, staring down at it with her eyes flooding with tears. She hadn't been expecting a ring and when the man in charge of the five-minute service told Daryl he could kiss his bride, Beth was the one to throw herself against him, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him. She could feel Daryl being taken aback for a moment but then she felt his arms around her and he was kissing her back and this man was her husband.

He kept saying he was sorry that he couldn't afford more but she just smiled and kissed him and assured him that they should save their money for more important things. And honestly, eating in his truck in the Taco Bell parking lot after getting married was something she would always remember – no matter how white trash Daryl said it was. She just smiled and said it was perfect.

"We can get a room here for the night," Daryl said after coming back from throwing their trash away. "There's a Motel 6 'round here."

Beth smiled and shook her head. "Do you mind if we go home?" She asked. "I kind of want our first time in our bed. Not in some hotel room we'll never see again."

Daryl nodded and didn't say anything as he started the truck's engine. She sang quietly to songs on the radio and Daryl took the back roads, dark with hardly any other cars. She wondered where he got his impeccable sense of direction and she felt as if he knew every back road in Georgia. She wanted him to teach her.

He pulled up in front of the small house in the woods a little after one and it was so dark, he told her to wait in the truck for a moment. She watched him for as long as she could but eventually, his frame melted into the darkness surrounding them. And then, a light in the house went on and the light on the front porch. He came back outside and she smiled, opening the truck's door.

"Wait," he said though before she could slide out.

She looked at him, curiously, and then she gasped when he suddenly scooped her up in his arms. She laughed softly as she put her arms around his neck and he smiled a little, kicking the truck's door shut with his foot before carrying her to the house, through the door and inside. He didn't set her down but carried her into the bedroom, gently bouncing her down onto the bed. She laughed again and her hands went to the front of his vest, pulling him down towards her.

"Hold on," he smiled a little. "Gotta shut the front door." He kissed her on the forehead and left the bedroom. The house wasn't that big and he was back within moments, having closed and locked the front door and turned off the lights.

Beth sat up, pulling off her cowboy boots, dropping them onto the floor, and then she scooted up the bed, smiling at him, never looking away from him. Daryl hesitated a moment, looking shy, but then he came to her, slipping his vest and jacket off, leaving them on the floor, and when he crawled onto the bed to join her, Beth reached for him and pulled him close.

It was sometime just before dawn when Daryl fell asleep but Beth was still feeling wide awake, almost afraid that if she closed her eyes, she would wake up to find that none of this had actually happened. She looked at Daryl sleeping and then at the ring on her finger and then back to Daryl again. Her husband. She had a husband and she was a wife and she couldn't remember ever being this happy before.

"Beth Dixon," she then whispered into the silence and darkness of the predawn night and then she giggled to herself, trying to hush herself before she woke Daryl.

She felt euphoric.

Having to go to the bathroom, she sat up and then got from the bed slowly. Daryl was such a light sleeper and she didn't want to disturb him. He had driven them to Atlanta and then had driven them back and he had spent the past few hours in their bed, being very good to her. He deserved rest.

She found her underwear and his shirt, putting both on, before creeping from the room into the small bathroom. After flushing the toilet and washing her hands, she paused and looked around. She wondered if Daryl would mind if she got some new things for the bathroom. A new shower curtain, a new rug, fluffier towels. They had to go to the farm today so she could pack up her room and bring her things here.

She opened the door and gasped, jumping with fright when she saw Daryl standing there, still naked. Her hand flew to her chest and she laughed softly.

"You scared me," she told him as if he couldn't tell.

"Thought you left," he said.

Her laughter melted into a soft smile and she stepped to him, her arms sliding up around his neck. "I'm not going anywhere. Married, remember?" she whispered to him, looking into his eyes.

Daryl stared at her for a moment and then he was the one to initiate the kiss, pressing his lips to hers, almost too hard but Beth didn't mind. She stood on her toes to press her lips back to his, matching his pressure, and his arms bound around her waist, pushing her backwards back into the bathroom.

He easily lifted her up, balancing her on the edge of the sink, and Beth immediately felt warm and excited and wet. They had never done this before. She kissed him as she felt his hands gliding up her thighs and then his fingers pushed her underwear to one side. She was so hot and the air of the bathroom was cold against her but then Daryl was pressing himself inside of her and she gasped his name, fingers clutching his arms. He took her slow, their bodies rocking together, the small bathroom filled with her soft moans and their heavy panting, and she thought she might fall a few times but Daryl held her tightly. She knew he would never let her fall.

She remembered the first time they made love because even back then, she knew that that was what it was between them. It had been clumsy and awkward. She had had sex a couple of times before with her ex-boyfriend, Jimmy, and Daryl had done it with a few nameless women he picked up from bars but neither were experts, both having gone a long time without. They had to learn one another – what the other liked and what made them moan and gasp and lose all sense of control. It had taken them a few times, a bit of practice, and now there was this – her husband taking her on the edge of the bathroom sink and making her toes curl.

She found herself always wanting Daryl inside of her, filling her completely and connecting their bodies in the closest way imaginable. Not that she compared – she didn't even think of Jimmy anymore – but the first time she saw Daryl Dixon, she hadn't been able to help herself. She had only seen one other and no offense to Jimmy but Daryl was definitely a man. It stung and she was a little sore afterwards but she found herself only wanting more.

"Fuck, you're so wet," he panted in her ear and if anything, that just made her gush more around him.

"That's a dime," she moaned and he let out a huff of laughter, dropping his head down to the side of her throat. "Daryl… harder," she whimpered.

Daryl took a step back, pulling out from her, and she couldn't help but moan a little from the emptiness. She slid down from the sink and he pulled her underwear down, tossing them away somewhere. He then turned her around, facing away from him, and she felt her thighs slick as he then put a hand on the small of her back and gently pushed her down. She spread her legs a little and gripped the edges of the sink and then moaned when he situated himself behind her and slid back inside.

It had been a discovery to both of them that she loved this particular position.

And it didn't take long of him pounding into her from behind that she came with a cry of his name and her completion pushed him towards his own. He gripped her hips and jerked inside of her and she dropped her head down, breathing heavily, resting her forehead on the cool faucet.

"I'm so glad I married you," she breathed and he chuckled softly against her back.

They left the bathroom, her underwear being left on the floor, and she pulled off his shirt she was still wearing, dropping that as well. Dawn had come, the sky blood reds and oranges, and Daryl said it was going to rain later as they got back into bed.

"You can tell that just by looking at the sky?" She asked.

"It's an old sayin'. Red sky in the mornin', sailor take warnin'," he said.

She smiled at that, at him, and she pressed herself against him, holding him close. She couldn't bite back a yawn and she rested her head on his chest. "We don't have anywhere to be today anyway."

"Don't you wanna go get your stuff today?" He asked.

"Maybe tomorrow," she said, her eyes closed. "I'd rather stay here today. Or maybe my parents can bring everything. I know they're dying to see the house."

Daryl was quiet for a moment. "Ain't much to see."

"No," she admitted. "But I think we could fix it up a bit." She opened her eyes and tilted her head up to look at his face. "Do you mind if we fix it up a bit?" She asked.

He shook his head. "'Course not," he answered immediately. "This is your house now, too. Want you to be happy here," he finished quietly.

Beth smiled and pushing her chin upwards, her lips brushed across his lips. "I'm so glad I married you," she whispered to him again.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	10. Zach

**Good morning! Like I mentioned before, this story jumps all over the place. We have this part and then Carol's POV will be next. After that, we have Luke - hard to write from a four-year-old POV, by the way - and then Jimmy. After that I'm not sure, Maybe Merle or Glenn. I might be going back to Maggie. I have had a few requests for Shawn and I have an idea for his particular POV. Thank you for the reading, reviews and requests! You guys are awesome! **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Ten.**

Zach let out an appreciative whistle as he caught sight of the blonde who had just walked into the office in a floral dress and cowboy boots. She was hot as hell and Zach wondered who she was. He had just moved to town a couple of months ago and didn't know too many people besides who he worked with but he knew that that girl was a girl he had to know.

He watched her through the glass window as she talked with Dale, the owner of the garage, laughing and smiling and nodding her head to whatever the older man was saying.

She looked to be about his age and with her blonde hair and small frame, she reminded him of a few of the cheerleaders he had dated in high school. God, he had loved cheerleaders. They had been so flexible and he missed them on lonely nights. There were some cute girls in the area but none that looked like her.

Dale then opened the door from the office that led to the garage and stuck his head out. "Dixon!" He called out. "Wife's here!"

Whoa, what? Wife?

Zach's head zipped around as Daryl pushed himself from beneath the car he had been working on and stood up, grabbing a rag to wipe at his oily hands. Daryl Dixon was married to that girl in there? How the hell had that happened? He didn't even know the girl but Zach could already tell that it made absolutely no sense. That was seriously Daryl Dixon's wife?

He had worked in Dale's garage and had gotten to know the other coworkers – except for Daryl. He was quiet and stayed to himself. He was the best mechanic in there and Dale had had Zach shadow him for a while. That man was made to work on vehicles; a damn near genius and when Zach told him that, Daryl had snorted and shook his head but didn't say anything.

Daryl was always willing to help but he was a bit surly, Zach noticed. He wasn't necessarily unfriendly. He was just standoffish. A redneck who probably had the confederate flag hanging in his house somewhere. And after being in these parts for only a couple of months, he had heard his fair share of stories about the Dixons – none of which gave the family glowing reviews.

Zach watched – but tried to make it look like he wasn't – as Daryl crossed the garage. The girl – his _wife_ – was standing in the doorway and smiling as he approached. Daryl reached and slid a hand on her hip, giving it a squeeze, and she smiled up at him as if she just saw the sun for the first time in the sky and knew he had hung it there for her.

What the hell was going on? Zach frowned a little as he watched. He couldn't help it. What the hell was that girl doing with Daryl Dixon? She was all pale and delicate and he was dirty and oily and Zach looked at the dirty hand that now rested on her clean dress, it looking so out of place amongst the floral pattern.

The more he stared at the couple, the less it made sense.

He moved closer, pretending he was looking for a tool from one of the boxes, and he watched them from the corner of his eye.

He was saying something, too low for Zach to hear, but whatever it was, Beth laughed softly, lightly, and Zach wondered what Daryl had said because the man didn't really strike him as the funny type. But whatever he said, it made Beth's eyes sparkle and she couldn't seem to stop smiling.

Zach was struck by how hot she was. And how young. She looked way too young for Daryl. He wasn't entirely sure how old Daryl was but Beth seemed too young for him. She seemed closer to someone… well, someone like his age. Seriously. How the hell had Daryl Dixon landed that girl as his wife?

Daryl said something and she nodded before bouncing up on her toes and giving him a quick kiss that left the tips of his ears red. She said something – clearly an _I love you_ – and Daryl nodded his head, dipping his head down and putting his to her ear, whispering something that made her cheeks bloom in a light pink.

"Alright, Daryl," Dale appeared. "I'm not paying you to woo your wife."

Daryl lowered his eyes to the ground and his wife laughed softly.

"How do you know I'm not the one wooing my husband?" She asked Dale, who smiled good-naturedly. "I just came by to tell him something. I didn't mean to take him away from work."

"You take all the time you need, Beth," Dale said. "Daryl hasn't taken his break yet."

"It'll only take a few minutes," she promised and taking Daryl's hand, she pulled him towards the large overhang door and Daryl followed.

Zach watched them go and then looked to Dale, who caught him watching.

"Before you ask," Dale said. "You will never understand that one. Now get back to work." And with that, Dale turned and went back into the office.

Zach lingered before going back to the car he had been working on. He saw Daryl and his wife – Beth – standing at the end of the driveway and she was saying something to him, smiling faintly, and he stared at her with a slightly blank face. She stopped talking and stared up at him, biting her bottom lip, looking nervous. Daryl still didn't say anything. She lifted her hands, putting her hands on his cheeks, her thumbs running back and forth along the bones beneath his eyes. He shuffled a bit closer to her, the space between them nearly closed.

Slowly, Zach watched Daryl put his hands on her hips, thumbs stroking back and forth over the fabric of her dress. And then slowly, the corners of his mouth began to twitch in a smile. Zach noticed it immediately because Daryl Dixon definitely didn't smile often. He pretended to be busy under the car's hood, his wrench to the engine but he actually wasn't doing anything. He found himself completely distracted.

And then, suddenly, Daryl grabbed her and crushed her to him, Beth letting out a squeak of surprise but then she laughed as he hugged her tightly, his arms bound around her waist. He lifted her up, her feet dangling above the ground, and her arms circled around his neck.

"You're staring."

Zach turned his head to see Caesar Martinez come up beside him, wiping his hands on a rag. Zach knew that of all the mechanics, Daryl was probably closest to Martinez but even then, that didn't mean much. Daryl liked sticking to himself.

"Yeah…" Zach finally was able to move his eyes away to look at Martinez.

Martinez looked to Daryl and Beth, still hugging, and smirked a little, pulling a pack of cigarettes out from his back pocket.

"Don't even think about it, Martinez!" Dale shouted from the office. "Take it outside!"

Martinez smirked again and stepped from the garage, Zach walking with him. Daryl and Beth were still standing at the end of the driveway, Daryl having put her back on her feet and they were now talking to one another in soft voices, foreheads together.

"So, what's the deal?" Zach finally asked.

"Don't try to figure it out, man," Martinez shook his head and then took a moment to light the cigarette. He exhaled a stream of smoke. "A year later and no one can."

"How'd they even meet?" Zach asked.

Martinez shrugged. "How do any of us meet?"

Zach went back to looking at Daryl and Beth. Mainly Beth.

She was seriously hot. Like walking down the street and this girl walking past and she could take his breath away kind of hot.

He watched as Daryl's hand then went to Beth's stomach, resting there, Beth's hand covering his, her bright smile across her lips, and both Zach and Martinez froze and seemed to stop breathing when they saw him do it. There was only one reason why a man would touch a woman's stomach like that.

If she wasn't before, she was now.

Beth Dixon was very, very off the market.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review! <strong>


	11. Carol

**Holy shit! That's all I can say to the response on the last chapter. Thank you so, so much. I am just so blown away with the response to this story. I'm so glad I can make all of you as happy reading this as happy as writing this makes me. I absolutely love the next few chapters and I hope you love them, too. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Eleven. **

Daryl Dixon did not beat his wife. She didn't care what everyone else in town seemed to think.

Carol Peletier looked at the couple from behind the reception desk as they sat in the waiting room of the doctor's office and if Carol knew anything – unfortunately – it was men who beat their wives.

Everyone knew Beth Greene and not that many people knew Daryl Dixon but they knew those with his last name and the Dixon last name certainly did him no favors. People thought he lived in the woods, slugging around his sweet wife, and Carol didn't understand how anyone could think that about this couple. They had been sitting there for just five minutes and Carol had work to do but she kept being distracted. They were the only ones sitting there and Carol's eyes kept leaving her computer screen to watch them curiously.

Beth's head was resting on her husband's shoulder as his knee bounced up and down nervously. She laughed softly and placed a hand on it to still it, whispering to him to calm down. She wasn't showing yet so Carol knew she wasn't far along at all but she already had that glow that all pregnant women had. This was probably just an appointment to confirm.

"Stop," Beth laughed again. "Why are you so nervous?" She lifted her head from his shoulder and looked at him with sparkling eyes.

Daryl shrugged and leaned forward, putting his arms on his knees. He looked to Carol behind the receptionist desk and then back to Beth. "What time's the appointment?" He asked.

"We have a few more minutes," Beth said, reaching to him and rubbing at a spot of oil on the side of his neck.

He sighed and sat back in the seat, sinking down a bit. He stretched his legs out in front of him and crossed them at the ankle. He crossed his arms over his chest and rested the back of his head against the wall behind him, turning it to look at her.

"You nervous?" He asked.

"Yes." Her answer was immediate but her smile was soft. "I can do this though."

His frown was instantly deep. "Who says you can't?"

"People are going to think I'm an idiot for having a Dixon baby," she said softly, her eyes never leaving his.

Daryl nodded, finding no argument with that. "You are," he agreed.

"I hope we have a boy," Beth decided not to comment on his previous statement. "A son that you can teach how to hunt and track."

"Can teach a daughter that, too," Daryl shrugged and Beth smiled, leaning in and kissing him on the cheek.

"I love you," she whispered.

Daryl looked at her for a moment, the look on his face intense. "Yeah," he finally said. "Think you're an idiot for that, too."

Carol continued clacking the computer's keyboard but her eyes looked to Beth to see what the young woman would say to that. But Beth seemed to have no reaction; almost as if it was something Daryl said often. She just sighed softly and turned her head towards the small table beside her chair, looking at the magazines there. She picked one up and flipped through it, not reading any of the articles. But then something made her stop and her eyes skimmed over the words, laughing softly to herself over whatever she read.

"What?" Daryl looked away from staring at the wall to look at her.

Beth shook her head, still laughing a little. "My hormones are going to be going crazy for the next few months," she looked at him. "It's your job to help me with it."

Carol pursed her lips together at Daryl's obviously clueless expression, turning her head back to her computer screen.

"What do I know 'bout hormones?" He asked.

"My sexual hormones, Daryl," Beth told him in a whisper and Carol could see Daryl Dixon's ears turn red from across the room.

Seeing a Dixon embarrassed was like seeing two suns in the sky.

He didn't say anything to that but he pressed his lips to her forehead and Beth closed her eyes, the most serene smile on her face. That was not a woman who was afraid of her husband's touch; who flinched whenever he got too close, never too sure what he was going to do; never wondered if it was a kiss or a hit he was going to give her. That was not a woman who lived constantly on an edge of uncertainty; a woman who lived in a cold-gripping fear of the man she was married to; shared a bed with; had a baby with.

That was a woman deeply in love with her husband and that was a man deeply in love with his wife.

Carol was sure she had been in love with Ed, so many years ago. She forgot that most days but she knew, once upon a time, she had been in love. And even when he hit and threw her around, she was fucked up enough to know she still loved him.

Ed had always been an angry man, even before they had gotten married, and maybe, when he first started beating her, a part of her hadn't been surprised. Every day, she wondered why she stayed; why she even married him but it all came back to that one word. That one stupid, horrible word. Love.

Daryl's lips slowly left Beth's head and his hand slid over her stomach, resting there. Beth smiled and her hand rested over his, her head coming to a rest on his shoulder again.

The only sound was the soft clacking of the computer keys as Carol continued typing. She was on the phone when the door opened and Karen, the nurse, told Beth and Daryl they could come on back. And as they walked past the front desk, Carol saw Daryl's hand barely touching the small of Beth's back. They went back to where the examination rooms were and Karen closed the door behind them.

Carol continued working, answering phones and setting appointments and going through the office emails.

She knew this was an appointment to confirm the pregnancy and Carol found herself hoping that it turned out that Beth was pregnant. Carol thought it would be good for the people to see Daryl Dixon be a father and show to them that he was nothing like his own. He was the Dixon that had broken the mold of the family that came before him and Carol didn't understand how few others seemed to see it.

It was no secret to her how Beth had fallen in love with him. Her daughter, Sophia, went to the daycare after school and Carol had talked with Beth every day when she left the office to go and pick her up. Beth was beautiful and young and sweet and so good at her job. All of the kids adored her. Sometimes, Daryl was already there, waiting for his wife. He looked intimidating, leaning against his motorcycle in his leather vest with the angel wings on the back with a cigarette on his lower lip. His eyes were always slightly narrowed as if waiting for someone to come at him.

But the instant Beth stepped outside, the very second he saw her, it all disappeared. He would toss his cigarette away and stand up, watching as she hurried to him, practically skipped, and he smiled a little – as much as Daryl seemed capable of smiling – as she threw her arms around him. She never kissed him. Daryl didn't seem to like open displays of affection and Beth knew that. She always hugged him as if she hadn't seen him in months.

Carol could see how much he cared for her; how much he loved her. Carol would look at the couple outside of the daycare center and could tell that Daryl would fight the entire world if it meant keeping Beth safe. Carol looked at them and knew that Daryl didn't beat his wife; knew he would kill anyone who even thought of raising a hand to her.

Daryl Dixon was not a bad man.

The door opened a half hour later and they came out, Beth's smile almost blinding and Daryl behind her, looking extremely pale and nervous.

"Congratulations," Carol smiled as Beth came to the desk.

"Thank you, Carol," Beth couldn't stop smiling. "The doctor wants to see me again in four weeks."

"Absolutely," Carol spun back towards the computer, bringing up the schedule. She looked to Daryl. "You okay?" She asked, trying to keep from smiling widely. Typical first-time father reaction. Daryl looked at her and didn't say anything. "You'll be okay," Carol then gave a nod and a smile.

"He'll be just fine," Beth smiled at him, too.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	12. Luke

**This is the chapter I'm probably most unsure of just because it is very hard to write from a four-year-old's POV but I tried my hardest and did the best I could. I hope you like it!**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twelve.**

Luke liked riding in the Sheriff's car. He had been in it a few times now and sometimes, the Sheriff would turn on the sirens for him and Luke would laugh. When the Sheriff came into the daycare center, Luke saw him and waved excitedly. He liked the Sheriff and he really liked the Sheriff's hat. The Sheriff saw him and gave him a wave before walking up to Mrs. Lori, whispering something her ear.

Luke was playing with his Play-Doh on the floor as he did almost every other day. He absolutely loved the center's collection of Play-Doh and he always asked his mommy for some but she always told him that it was stupid to waste their money on that. So he played with it when at the daycare center as much as he could and Mrs. Beth always made sure that it stayed fresh and soft for him.

Mrs. Beth was his favorite. He thought she smelled good like Play-Doh and she was always smiling and playing songs on the piano and he liked when she sang, too. Sometimes, Luke liked to pretend that Mrs. Beth was his mommy like Mrs. Lori was Carl's. He would want Mrs. Beth for his mommy more than anyone.

In the evening, when parents began picking their kids up, Luke began cleaning up his Play-Doh just as Mrs. Beth was always asking him to. He knew his real mommy would be one of the last ones to come so he didn't hurry. The Sheriff was still talking to Mrs. Lori and now Mrs. Beth had joined them and Carl stood nearby, the Sheriff's hat on his head and Luke tried not to be jealous.

He heard a motorcycle outside and knew it was Mr. Daryl, Mrs. Beth's husband. Luke had seen him sometimes at the house with his brother, Merle, who was friends with his daddy. Mr. Daryl didn't come by anymore though. Luke missed him. Mr. Daryl was the only guy who came into his house to see his parents that hadn't scared him.

"Luke, sweetie, can you come here?" Mrs. Beth said, crouching down to be at his level, her warm smile on her face.

Luke dropped the tubs of Play-Doh into the plastic bin where it was all kept and then came hurrying over to her.

"Hi, Luke," Mrs. Beth smiled. "I want to ask you a question and you have to be honest with me. Remember how important it is for you to always be honest?"

Luke nodded, looking at her, eager to hear what the question was. From the corner of his eye, he saw someone else stand in the doorway of the room and he turned his head, seeing that it was Mr. Daryl. He looked back to Mrs. Beth and she smiled.

"Luke, would you like to come stay with me and my husband for a few days at our house?" She asked.

"Yes!" Luke exclaimed without hesitation.

Mrs. Beth smiled. "Sheriff Grimes has gone to your house already and has gotten some of your things. You're going to ride with him and he's going to drive you to our house, okay?"

"Can I ride on Mr. Daryl's bike?" Luke asked, looking at Mr. Daryl still standing in the doorway with an excited smile.

Mr. Daryl's lips twitched a little. "Maybe some other time, kid."

Luke looked at Mrs. Beth, who smiled at him. "Can we go now?" He asked, and he felt his stomach flutter as if he was about to get a double scoop of chocolate ice cream.

He couldn't believe this was really going on. He had always wanted to go home with Mrs. Beth. He could imagine how nice her house was. Clean and smelled good and warm with food in the refrigerator and water that wasn't freezing on his skin. Maybe they had bubbles. He heard the other kids talking sometimes. He had never taken a bubble bath before.

"Yes, sweetie, we can go now," Mrs. Beth smiled and then stood up.

As Mrs. Lori helped him get his jacket on, Luke looked to Mrs. Beth who had gone to Mr. Daryl, slipping her arms up around his neck, and his hands rested on her hips.

"Thank you for this," she said softly.

He leaned in and brushed his lips across her forehead.

Outside, Luke hurried to the police car and the Sheriff opened the front passenger door for him, helping him climb in and he then buckled the seatbelt across him. When Sheriff got in behind the wheel, they waited a moment and Luke watched Mr. Daryl and Mrs. Beth climb onto the motorcycle and when they took off, the Sheriff started his car and began driving after them. Luke had no idea where they were going and he didn't take his eyes off from the window.

"Are you curious about where your parents are?" Sheriff asked.

"Nope," Luke answered. "Mommy and daddy sometimes leave."

Sheriff was quiet after that and they were driving in the woods now. They stopped in front of a small house amongst the trees and as soon as Sheriff stopped the car and turned the engine off, Luke unbuckled his seatbelt and hurried out.

Inside, it was just as he imagined. Clean. So clean. Sheriff set his bag on the couch and then he and Mr. Daryl stepped out on the porch together.

"I'm sorry, Luke," Mrs. Beth said. "Daryl and I don't have an extra bed at the moment but the couch is super comfy. I promise. Daryl used to sleep on it all of the time."

Luke just kept smiling and looking around. It was clean and it smelled like Mrs. Beth.

"I don't think they're going to be making bail anytime soon," Luke heard the Sheriff say on the front porch through the screen door. "You and Beth okay with this? I guess she has a sister in South Carolina but I can't get a hold of her. I'll keep trying."

"We'll be fine," Mr. Daryl said in his low gruff voice. "Beth's been sayin' for a while his parents are shit. Doesn't surprise me. Big customers of my brother's."

Sheriff was quiet for a moment. "Let me or Lori know if you need any help."

"Luke," Mrs. Beth said, causing Luke to turn his head towards her again. She was standing in the kitchen. "Would you like to help me with dinner?"

"Yeah!" He exclaimed and hurried to her.

They ate dinner, the three of them, at the table – beefaroni casserole that Luke ate two plates off and decided that it was the best thing he had ever tasted. After dinner, Mrs. Beth ran a bath for him – warm water and bubblegum scented bubbles – and after his fingertips were prunes, Mrs. Beth came in to towel him off and help him into his pajamas. Mr. Daryl was sitting on the couch, watching the television, and he looked at Luke as he climbed on the couch to sit beside him.

"What do you watch?" Mr. Daryl asked, picking up the remote, looking at him.

Luke just shrugged and smiled at him and Mr. Daryl left on the episode of television he was watching.

"Daryl," Mrs. Beth said a few minutes later. She was sitting at the piano, tinkering away on the keys and writing something down on a piece of paper with a pencil. "That doesn't sound like it's appropriate for certain ears," she told him.

Mr. Daryl shrugged. "'Cause it ain't. It's _Sons of Anarchy_," he replied. He looked to Luke. "Wanna watch somethin' else?" He asked.

"Nope," Luke grinned up at him and shook his head.

"See?" Mr. Daryl looked back to Mrs. Beth, who sighed and kept looking at him.

Mr. Daryl sighed then, too, changed channels, now watching some show about cars.

When Mrs. Beth declared it was time for bed, Mr. Daryl turned off the television and stood up, looking down to Luke.

"Sleep tight, kid," he said and patted him on the head before walking through a doorway that led into another room. Luke could see it was a bedroom where he and Mrs. Beth slept.

Mrs. Beth brought him a pillow and Luke eagerly laid down and she smiled, covering him with several blankets. "You come and get me if you get too cold, okay, sweetie?" She said and he nodded, looking up at her. She was so pretty and nice and Luke wanted to tell her that she smelled good like Play-Doh but he didn't. Instead, he yawned and Mrs. Beth leaned down and kissed him on the head. "Good night, Luke. Sweet dreams."

"Good night, Mrs. Beth," he said.

She smiled at that. "You can call us Beth and Daryl," she told him.

He smiled and nodded. He watched as she turned lights off and then made sure the front door was locked and then said to him softly once more to have sweet dreams and then she went into the bedroom, the door remaining partially open.

He heard them get into bed a little while later, the bed creaking as they did.

"You okay?" He heard Beth ask softly.

"Like lookin' into a mirror," Daryl answered.

And Luke didn't know what they were talking about or what he meant, but he didn't really care because he realized how tired he was and he was asleep within minutes, the pillow smelling like fabric softener and the blankets warm and soft around him.

He always knew he would love it here.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	13. Jimmy

**I love this chapter. As much as I love writing Daryl and Beth married, I really love writing them during this part in their relationship. The next chapter will be from Annette's POV and then another Daryl POV and then we will have Carl. Just remember if you have a request for a POV, just let me know and I will do my best to write everyone! Thank you!**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Thirteen.**

Jimmy couldn't help but stare as she sat across from him. "You look so good, Beth," he said, his cheeks flushing a little as he said it but he didn't take the words back.

Beth blushed a little, too. "Thank you," she gave him a small smile and then continued looking down at the menu though everyone in town came to the diner so often, the menu was pretty much memorized.

He looked at her and he tried to remember why he had ever broken up with her. They had dated all four years of high school and were one another's firsts in nearly every single way. But when they graduated, Jimmy was off to the state university and Beth was staying and going to the community college and he had gotten it into his head that long-distance anything between them just wouldn't work. So, he ended it and went off and met new people – new girls – but in the back of his mind, he wasn't able to shake himself of Beth Greene. He knew he loved her; was probably in love with her and after he graduated and came back to town, one of the first things he did was seek her out to talk to her again.

He wasn't surprised that she worked at Lori Grimes' daycare center now. Beth had always been so good with kids and she was just the sort of girl who became a teacher of some kind.

When she saw him, she had been surprised and he didn't blame her. They hadn't seen one another in four years and the last time they had, they hadn't parted on the best of terms. She had been crying and he had pretended that he knew what he was doing when he stood there and practically broke her heart.

He had asked her if she wanted to take her lunch break with him and she had hesitated, her eyes moving to the clock, before looking back at him.

"If you can't do lunch, maybe we can meet for dinner?" He suggested.

She shook her head. "No, lunch will be fine. I have other plans already for tonight."

She had a half-hour for lunch and they went to the diner down the street, taking a booth next to one of the windows and sliding in across from one another.

Jimmy watched her as she read the menu. Beth Green was always the prettiest girl to him and when he graduated high school and they broke up, he imagined all of the girls at college he would meet. They wouldn't just be pretty. They would be hot. Beth had never been hot to him. Pretty. But not hot. He was excited to meet some hot girls and move on.

And college did have plenty of hot girls but none of them were as pretty as Beth Greene and when a few guys had seen a picture of her one time, they all clapped him on the back and told him how lucky he was to have a girl like that back home.

After not seeing her for four years, he studied her now and she wasn't just a pretty girl or a hot girl. Beth Greene was beautiful.

She wore a yellow dress and a gray cardigan sweater with her cowboy boots and her blonde hair was down in soft curls, some of the locks pinned back from her face.

Jimmy wanted to talk with her, to get her to talk to him, but he found he really just wanted to sit there and look at her. He wasn't expecting Beth to say anything to him. She had always been a bit of a chatterbox but that had been before and this was now and it was obvious that she was still a bit broken with how he had ended things.

The bell above the door tinkled as it was pulled open and he naturally looked to see who it was. Caesar Martinez and Daryl Dixon. Probably on their lunch break, too, from Dale's Garage where they worked. Beth had looked over her shoulder, too, to see who it was and when she saw, Jimmy saw her visibly stiffen.

"You okay?" He asked, reaching across the table to rest his hand over hers.

Daryl Dixon was staring right at them. Or rather, staring right at Beth, and Jimmy couldn't exactly blame the guy for staring at her but at the same time, he was obviously making Beth super uncomfortable with his eyes set on her.

"Fine," Beth said softly, pulling her hand out from under his and dropping both hands into her lap. "I shouldn't be here," she then said softly, shaking her head, lifting her eyes to look at him.

"Where else would you be?" He asked.

"Somewhere other than here with you," Beth told him. "I'm sorry, Jimmy. I'm just not sure what you want from me. It's been four years…" she trailed off then and her eyes floated over to the diner's counter where a couple of people – as well as Martinez and Dixon – were sitting. "I've moved on," she told him, her voice soft yet firm.

"With who?" Jimmy couldn't help but ask. "Do I know him?"

"It doesn't matter," she shook her head. "I moved on and I'm in love. I'm in love with someone else, Jimmy."

"Who?" He asked again and he knew he shouldn't be surprised – had no right to be – but he couldn't help it. A part of him had honestly just expected that Beth would wait for him.

She shook her head. "We're not ready to tell anyone yet but it's real. It's more real and more deep than anything you and I ever had together. I'm sorry, Jimmy," she said.

Jimmy stared at her. He heard her words and yet, they didn't make any sense to him.

He realized how quiet the diner suddenly sounded. It was as if everyone was listening to their conversation right now.

"You love this guy more than you loved me?" Jimmy asked.

"Yes," Beth answered without pause and it pierced him sharply in the chest.

Was this how she felt four years earlier when he broke up with her and left town? Because if so, damn. This was brutal.

"I was hoping-" he heard himself begin to say.

"I'm sorry, Jimmy," she cut him off and stood up.

He looked up at her and she looked at him. She didn't say anything else and he didn't know what to say to her. This lunch didn't go at all as he had planned. He was hoping to get to know her again, to apologize and then maybe, they could pick up where they had left off. Jimmy was going to be staying in town, helping his dad with the family farm, and he had just assumed he would have Beth on his arm as he did.

He watched Beth as she turned and left the diner then, the bell tinkling after her, Martinez muttering an "Ouch" loud enough for him to hear but Jimmy remained sitting there, as if frozen to the spot with his shock.

…

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><p>He had always liked to walk in the woods when he had something to think about or if he just needed to get away from things for a while. And after his disastrous lunch with Beth, he definitely needed to get away and think by himself for a while.<p>

He didn't know why he had expected that to go any differently than it had. It had been four years. He had broken up with her so he could go off to college and be with other girls. Why the hell had he told himself that Beth would wait for him and still love him and still want to be with him when he got back? He was such a jackass.

He saw a house ahead amongst the trees and though he had never been there before, he knew who's house it was. Daryl Dixon lived in the woods and most people were smart enough to stay the hell away but he kept walking closer to it for some reason, not able to help himself. Maybe Daryl had some weed or some moonshine he could buy off of him. He was a Dixon. He had to have something and Jimmy definitely needed something to help fog up his mind right now.

As he got closer, he heard two voices and he stopped far enough away to remain unseen but close enough to hear. He recognized Beth's voice instantly. What the hell was Beth doing at Daryl Dixon's house? He almost stormed through the trees to rescue her because she obviously needed rescuing but his curiosity got the better of him again and he found himself hesitating; overhearing.

Daryl was standing on the front porch, leaning against one of the posts, and Beth was standing on the ground at the bottom step.

"You mean it?" He was asking.

"Of course I mean it. And I meant everything I said this afternoon. I love you and I want to be with you," she said.

Jimmy almost began choking then on too much air inhaled. Daryl Dixon was the guy Beth loved more and deeper than she had ever loved him? Daryl Dixon?! What the hell? She couldn't be serious. He was white trash. A redneck. A lowlife criminal. The list for the Dixons went on and on and this was the guy Beth was leaving him for?

"Do you want to be with me? Do you… not want me anymore?" She asked and she sounded absolutely terrified.

Daryl stared at her for a moment and then shook his head slightly. "Don't know what I'd do without you, Beth," he said softly but loud enough for Jimmy to hear and he felt all the air rush from his lungs at Daryl's answer.

Beth climbed the steps of the porch then and Daryl's hands slid over her cheeks, fingers back in her hair, and Jimmy could see Beth smile just before Daryl kissed her. They went into the house then, their bodies and lips hardly separating to do so. The screen door slapped shut behind them and then the front door closed with a slam.

Jimmy told himself to go home. He told himself to turn and walk the hell away before he threw up. Beth was with Daryl Dixon. What in the hell had happened? Had he entered some sort of parallel universe hidden in the woods where that made sense? Because in this universe, it made absolutely zero sense that those two would be together; that Beth would love someone like Daryl Dixon.

Again, his feet ignored the screaming protests of his brain and he tip-toed towards the old worn-down house. It was a warm spring day and the windows were open. And through one of those open windows, Jimmy heard a soft female moan and he remembered instantly the way Beth had sounded when they had been together.

He knew it was sick and perverted but again, he couldn't help himself. He crouched down and then barely peeked through the windows where the sounds were coming from. He heard Beth's soft moans and Daryl's grunts and the bed creaking and he looked to see them on said bed. Daryl was sitting up and Beth was straddling him, their arms tightly around one another as she rode him, her hips rocking against his and his fingers tangled in her hair.

Jimmy tried to run away but he couldn't stop watching. Beth Greene was having sex with Daryl Dixon; was in love with Daryl Dixon. He felt his stomach churn at the thought and the sight in front of him. He knew he wouldn't be the only one who would be wanting to throw up when everyone else found out.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	14. Annette

**I seriously cannot believe the response this story has been getting and I cannot thank you enough for it. I know this particular POV chapter has been one a lot of people have been asking for. And in this particular universe, Shawn is also around and will have a POV chapter. And no worries. Glenn is also coming up. Thank you for all of the requests! This story could honestly be a hundred chapters. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Fourteen. **

Annette screamed. She couldn't help it. She screamed and tears flooded her eyes and she rushed from her to chair to go to Beth. Beth stood up, laughing and crying a little, too, and Annette embraced her daughter tightly.

Hershel smiled and stood up, shaking Daryl's hand and clapping him on the back. Annette pulled her head back and looked at Beth, hands going to her cheeks.

"How are you feeling? Feeling alright? Is the morning sickness terrible? I had the worst morning sickness with Shawn but hardly had any with you," Annette said and then looked at Daryl. "Have you been holding her hair back when she throws up?"

"Yes, ma'am," Daryl nodded and Annette knew that the man was probably more nervous of her than he ever was of Hershel. She rather liked it like that.

"Good," Annette gave a head nod and then went to him, putting her arms around him and squeezing him tight. "I'm so happy for both of you," she smiled, stepping back, looking at them both. "Our first grandchild," she clasped her hands together, smiling at Hershel, who smiled in return. "We need to celebrate," she then declared and with that, she took Beth's hand and gently pulled her into the kitchen with her.

"Maggie didn't say anything," Beth said softly as Annette opened the freezer.

"She's probably just in shock, Bethy," Annette gave her a soft smile. "It's a huge announcement and none of us were expecting it. I had my suspicions but I didn't know it would be tonight."

"How did you have any suspicions?" Beth asked curiously, taking bowls down from the cabinet as Annette pulled out a tub of peppermint ice cream.

"The way you two look at one another, I swear he could get you pregnant like that."

"Mom," Beth said, her cheeks flushed, and Annette laughed softly.

"Don't worry about your sister," Annette told her in a quiet voice. "Whether she comes around or not, it's her loss. You and Daryl need to only worry about this little one right now. How's Daryl taking it?"

"Still in shock for the most part. He was happy when I first told him just because he knew how much I've been wanting it but now, he's just…" Beth trailed off and Annette looked to her, waiting though she had a feeling she knew what was going on in that son-in-law of hers head. "He thinks the Dixon blood is bad and our baby is already messed up because of it," Beth whispered.

Annette put an arm around her shoulders and kissed her on the head. "Don't you worry about that stupid husband of yours. He'll come around," she said.

"He remembers the way his dad was to him…" Beth trailed off again and sniffled. She wiped at her cheeks and then did her best to smile. "Hormones."

Annette squeezed her arm and kissed her head again. "Everything will be alright, Bethy," she told her softly. "Your father and I are so happy for you both. Are you happy?" Beth nodded, sniffling again. "That's all that matters." She pulled her arm away and pried open the tub of ice cream. "Does Luke get ice cream?" She asked.

Beth nodded and smiled faintly. "It's a special occasion."

"You're damn right, it is," Annette smiled.

Beth laughed. "Don't let daddy hear you talk like that."

Maggie was nowhere to be found but Hershel, Daryl and Luke were in the front living room now, Hershel telling Daryl each time when he found out he was going to be a father and Daryl listening intently to every word the man had to say. Luke had been staying with them for more than two months now, his parents still being held in the county jail until their trial date. Sheriff Grimes had pulled a few strings and had gotten Daryl and Beth named as the little boy's temporary guardians for the time being. Annette hoped that more strings could be pulled and the four-year-old could stay with them forever. He was such a sweet boy and he adored Daryl and Beth just as they adored him.

Annette never would have thought that anyone with the last name Dixon was capable of adoring anything besides themselves but Daryl had proved her wrong.

She had been so horrified when her husband had given his permission and blessing a year earlier so that Daryl Dixon could marry their young daughter. What the hell was he thinking? Had he lost his mind? He had just let their sweet young daughter run out of here with Daryl Dixon so she could become his wife. What was he doing?

Hershel had just patted her hand though and told her to keep calm and keep an open mind. She had been furious though. What the hell was he talking about? An open mind about a Dixon?

Sometimes, her husband drove her crazy though because he was right so much of the time and he knew he was. She had cried and sniffled as they packed up Beth's bedroom and loaded the truck. And she had cried and sniffled as Hershel drove them from their farm, through town, and to the woods where Daryl lived. Where Daryl and their daughter lived. It had been raining on and off all day but there was a break when they pulled to a stop in front of the house.

Annette had frowned when she saw it. Small and worn down and in need of a paint job, random car parts all over the front porch. Beth had come out, smiling and gave them both tight hugs and Annette begrudgingly admitted how happy their daughter looked. She looked positively euphoric.

Daryl came out then and nodded to them both, clearly unsure what to do. He went to the back of the truck and grabbed a box but Annette blocked his way as Beth pulled Hershel inside to show him the inside of the house. Daryl stood there, staring at her with a rather blank face and slightly tense shoulders as if preparing himself for the inevitable impact.

"If my daughter ever comes to me and I can tell you've hurt her, I'll kill you," Annette said in a low, steady voice, her eyes never leaving his.

He lowered his eyes then as if he was shy and Annette admitted to being surprised.

"If I ever hurt Beth, I'll kill myself 'fore you get the chance," he said.

And just like that, Annette knew that Daryl Dixon was not a bad man.

After that, it became a habit for her to watch her new son-in-law. He was quiet, almost shy, sometimes awkward. He preferred the quietness of the woods to family dinners on Sunday but he came because it was important to Beth and by watching him, Annette began to easily see just how crazy that Dixon man was for her daughter. He loved her so much and he did so silently but every time he would even look at Beth, it was right there for everyone to see.

And in learning how to read Daryl Dixon, she saw that he cared for Luke as well. Beth had told her that he was already teaching Luke about the tools he used to work on his bike and on things around the house and he let Luke hammer nails on the extra room they were building onto the house. Luke was begging with him to let him go hunting with him but Beth was unsure about that one even though she knew Daryl had been that age when he had first started hunting.

They handed out the bowls of ice cream and then Beth sat down beside Daryl on the couch. She didn't have a bowl for herself. Lately, too much dairy was bothering her, but she handed Luke a bowl and the boy sat on the floor at Beth and Daryl's feet, happily digging in.

"Where did Maggie go?" Beth asked, looking at her father.

"She said she had to go home. Forgot about something she had scheduled for tonight," Hershel answered and then, quieter, "I'm sorry, Bethy."

Annette sat in one of the chairs across from the couch and saw Daryl look at Beth, his hand sliding onto her thigh, giving it a squeeze. Beth looked at him and did her best to give a smile, shrugging as if it didn't matter though they all knew that it did.

"Just remember, Beth," Annette said. "Nothing matters right now except that baby." Beth nodded and rested her head down on Daryl's shoulder, his hand squeezing her thigh again. Annette looked at Daryl next. "And you. Your wife is a Dixon and that baby inside of her is a Dixon. Are you saying there's something wrong with my daughter and grandchild?"

She stared at Daryl with an arched eyebrow and Daryl looked at her, looking nervous just as he should be.

"No, ma'am," he said in his gruff tone.

"Damn right there's not," Annette said with a firm head nod.

"Annette," Hershel frowned at her but Annette just ate her ice cream with a smile on her lips.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	15. Daryl - Part III

**I seriously don't even know what to say anymore. You guys are the best, reading and reviewing and loving this story. Thank you so much for doing all that you do. Your enthusiasm with this story only makes me that much more excited to write chapter after chapter - and I have many chapters planned.**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Fifteen. **

She couldn't stay.

She told him almost as soon as she came inside and he closed the door behind her. She could stay for a few hours but not for the night. He nodded and wanted to ask her why not but he didn't. If she wanted to tell him, he figured she would.

She stood on her toes and kissed him, her arms slipping around his neck, and his own arms circled her waist, pulling her body to his, pressing his lips back to hers. She hadn't been able to come the night before – a children's recital being put on at the daycare center for the parents and she was in charge of running it – so he had gone way too many hours since he last tasted her.

It scared the shit out of him; this need to always be near her.

During the day, he tried to keep himself as busy as possible because if he even had a moment of spare time, his mind wandered to thoughts to Beth. To how soft she was and how her skin felt beneath his rough fingertips. To the soft moans that escaped her lips when he touched just the right spot. To the way her blonde hair looked against his dark sheets as she laid in his bed. To the way his shirts hung on her and her love for wearing them as often as she could.

He thought about her so much and wanted her all of the time and he didn't know what to do because he had _never_ experienced anything like this before in his life. He had pretty much always been on his own. He had gotten used to it; preferred it. And then Beth Greene got a flat tire on the side of the road and he saw her and she asked for his help and that was that. Within just a short time, he was completely addicted to her and he didn't know what he was doing with her but he knew, deep down, he didn't want it to stop anytime soon.

He never allowed himself to forget that Beth Greene was too good for him; never allowed himself to think that this would go on forever. Her ex-boyfriend, Jimmy, may have not been able to get her back but Daryl knew he wouldn't be the only one to try. Beth was pretty and young and good – too good for him in all ways that mattered – and he knew it really was only a matter of time before some other guy came around who was just as pretty and young and good.

Daryl knew he wouldn't stand a chance when that happened. Who was he? He was just some dirty redneck, too old for her, who lived in some shitty house back in the woods who couldn't give her anything she needed.

When she said she couldn't stay, he didn't allow himself to be disappointed though it was tempting to feel that. He really had to stop himself from getting used to having her around because when the day came when she was no longer around, it wouldn't bother him that much.

Beth broke their kiss with a yawn and she smothered it with her hand, laughing softly. "Sorry," she apologized. "I didn't sleep too much last night. The recital made me too excited," she said, stepping past him to sit down on the couch and pull off her cowboy boots, leaving them near the door.

"How'd it go?" He asked.

"Good," she smiled. "Really good. Give those kids triangles and cowbells and it's like you've handed them stars, they're so excited. And they love playing for their parents. Of course, I'm trying to teach them that shouting does not make good singing but that's a hurdle for another day."

His lips twitched a little and she stood up, looking at him and smiling.

"I'm going to start giving piano lessons," she told him. "In my spare time when I'm not working. I've already had a few parents ask me about it. It's a good way to make a little extra money. Help out with some things."

She was looking at him in a certain way when she said that and he wondered what she wanted him to say because she was definitely looking like she wanted him to say something about that.

But he didn't know what he was supposed to say so he didn't say anything.

Beth didn't say anything either, her eyes moving from his. She showed herself to the bedroom and he followed her, his eyes watching her every movement. He never understood how she was able to be so comfortable in his house. His house was a shit pile. Small and broken-down and just standing in the middle of his room, beginning to undress herself, he wanted to ask her what the hell she was doing there.

She yawned again and sat down on the edge of the bed in just her underwear and bra. White cotton. Nothing sexy. Beth never needed to wear things like that.

"You wanna sleep for a while?" He asked, her eyes looking at him with surprise.

"You wouldn't mind?" She asked.

He couldn't help but frown a little. "We don't gotta do it all the time, Beth."

Is that what she thought of him? That that was the only reason he let her come over? Probably. It's not like he ever told her anything different.

But then she looked at him like she sometimes did – like he was the best man she had ever known – and Daryl absolutely had no idea what to do when she looked at him like that. He usually just looked away and ignored it. Like he did now.

He went to the chair in the corner and picked up one of his flannel shirts that didn't smell and handed it to her. She smiled brightly as she pulled it on, buttoning a few of the buttons, and he then went to his alarm clock.

"What time do you have to leave?" He asked.

"Set it for nine-thirty," she said, yawning again and lying down.

Daryl set the alarm and then stood there for a moment, watching her as she slipped between the sheets. He didn't understand how she could look so damn natural in his bed like that, looking like she belonged there and nowhere else.

Again, he had to remind himself not to get used to any of this even though this had been going on for months already between them. Practically a year now. But there was just no way it could go on forever. One day, she would finally wake up and leave, realizing she didn't want his dirty Dixon hands touching her anymore, and that would be that.

She smiled faintly up at him. "Will you lie with me?" She asked softly.

And Daryl found himself nodding because he found himself unable to deny Beth too many things in this world. He couldn't give her anything and the few things he could, he made sure to give them to her without pause.

He took off his jeans and shirt, leaving them crumpled on the floor and slid between the sheets in just his boxers, feeling Beth's body beside him and instantly feeling warm. He wouldn't tell her how shitty he had slept the night before without her. He already felt stupid enough for that and didn't want to think about it anymore.

"What are you thinking about?" She asked him in the same soft voice, lying on her side, looking at him.

"Dale ordered some parts for me on a car I'm workin' on. I got to finish it tomorrow so I'm hopin' they get delivered," Daryl lied, looking up at the ceiling.

"Oh," she said quietly and then laughed softly. "I thought you were going to say me."

Daryl shrugged at that and didn't say anything and he didn't have to look at her face to be able to sense her disappointment at that. This was another thing she would leave him for. He said things that weren't said as a way to hurt her. He just said things without thinking and they wound up stinging her somehow. This was why he didn't talk much. He was shit at it.

He swallowed. "I try not think 'bout you, Beth. If I do, I can't really stop."

Beth was quiet for a moment. "When you do think about me, what do you think about?" She asked practically in a whisper.

"Things I don't have a right to think of," he answered truthfully.

She pushed herself up on her elbow, looking at him, and he turned his head to look at her. She was looking at him with happiness and caution and something else he couldn't tell all there in her eyes.

"You do, Daryl. You have every right," she told him.

He stared at her and didn't say anything.

"I told you about the piano lessons and the extra money because…" she paused and visibly swallowed as if nervous then but she never pulled her eyes from him. "I want to marry you, Daryl," she whispered.

Daryl stared at her and said nothing but then he pulled himself from the bed, grabbing his jeans. "You don't know what the hell you're talkin' 'bout, Beth," he said, jerking the jeans back on.

Beth sat up and he tried not to look at the way his shirt collar slipped off her shoulder. "I know exactly what I'm talking about. I love you. I want us to be together."

"There ain't no us, Beth," he frowned. "There's nothin' 'tween us except this," he gestured towards the bed.

"Don't do that, Daryl," she stood up from the bed now. "Don't say what we have is just sex. I know you care about me."

"It is and I don't. What did you think? Think we'd get married and you'd move in and we'd live 'appily ever after?"

"Yes," Beth answered instantly.

"It will never happen, Beth," he said firmly. "I ain't never gonna marry you."

He stood on one side of the bed and she stood on the other and he ignored the tears he saw glistening in her eyes. He was doing this because this was what he did. Self-preservation. Beth had already gotten closer to him than anyone ever had before but all he kept reminding himself was that this wouldn't last forever and if it was going to end, he was going to be the one in control of how it went down.

He wasn't going to admit that he had thought a couple of times before about marrying Beth. Having her live here with him, being his wife, being happy with him. And then he'd think of himself being a husband and he would be quick to tell himself how stupid he was being, thinking of having anything like that with Beth Greene.

If she married him, she had no idea what she was getting into.

"So, you're telling me I just wasted a year of my life waiting for you to want me the way I want you?" She whispered, her voice shaky.

He shrugged again, pretending that her words weren't slicing him all over. "Guess you did."

She looked at him and he forced himself to keep looking at her even though everything in his body was telling him to look away from her. Beth finally turned and he watched as she took off his shirt and started dressing herself again. He stood there and didn't say anything – did his best to ignore the sounds she made because she was trying to hide the fact from him that she was crying but he knew.

She walked from the room then and he suddenly didn't care.

He didn't care that she was so much better than him. He didn't care that she would probably leave his ass someday anyway. He didn't care that if they did get married, they would probably be broken up and divorced within a year.

She walked from the room and all he cared about was the fact that she would probably never be in this room again. He wanted to keep her there. With him. And he didn't care that it probably made him a selfish piece of shit.

He walked from the room and she was on the couch, tugging on her cowboy boots. When she saw him, she stood up. Her eyes were red and her cheeks were flushed and wet and she looked so god-damned beautiful standing there in his shitty house and she didn't belong there but he didn't want her anywhere else.

He stared at her and she stared at him and she was waiting for him to say something and this was one time Daryl knew he couldn't keep himself quiet.

"Beth… we should get married," he said, his voice soft and low, his words firm though.

Beth stared at him, not saying anything, and he didn't know if that should make him nervous or not.

He stared back, knowing he had to say something else. Something he had never said to someone else; something he hadn't even _thought_ to say to someone else. But he knew if he was going to say it to anyone, it would be to Beth.

He was too uncertain to look at her right then. "I love 'ya, Beth," he said and he said it so softly, he didn't know if she had even heard.

But he heard her gasp of air and he lifted his eyes slowly to look at her. She was staring at him and there were tears in her eyes but Daryl knew these were different; or at least hoped they were.

He didn't know what else to say. Wasn't what he just said enough? Did she expect him to say it again? He didn't know if he could. He didn't know if he ever could, to be honest, because with those words, his chest was sliced right down the middle and no one had ever seen inside of him like this. He wanted to turn and run but he kept his feet planted where he was because he also wanted to see this through. He was a Dixon. They didn't run from anything – especially little blonde women who weighed not even 110 pounds soaking wet.

Beth sniffled but the tears had stopped. She kept looking at him and he knew she didn't know what to say. He didn't blame her. She probably had never expected him to ever say those words to her just like he had never expected to say those words.

"I don't got a lot," he heard himself say in a quiet voice, his heart pounding in his chest, threatening to break ribs. "This is pretty much what you'll get. Just this."

"I don't need anything," she finally spoke, her voice just as soft.

He wanted to say that she said that now but she had no idea what it meant to be poor; to live paycheck to paycheck and still worry you won't have enough. There was never any extras and you had to scrape by just to make out a meager existence for yourself. It was going to be nothing like living with her mom and daddy in comfort on the farm.

But he looked at her and he swallowed all of those words down because he knew if anyone could do this with him, it would be Beth Greene. She was so much stronger than anyone would expect. Of course, she had to be if she put up with his stubborn ass for the past year.

"I-" she began to say but then she abruptly cut herself off. She looked at him but then lowered to the floor, her hand lifting to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. "I don't want to force you into something, Daryl," she whispered but he could still hear her. "I couldn't allow myself to ever be truly happy if I knew I did that to you."

Daryl closed the space between them and his hands didn't hesitate in rising to her cheeks, gently tilting her head upwards so she had to look at him. Beth was the only person in the world he thought of ever touching like this; the only person he could touch like this. He stared into her eyes and almost didn't even blink so she wouldn't have room to doubt him.

"Marry me."

He held his breath as she didn't answer right away. She kept her eyes locked with his, staring at him, studying him, searching for something. And he didn't know what so he just stood there and let her look her fill, hoping that she was able to find whatever it was because just at the thought of her leaving him, it made his stomach churn as if he had just drank too much bourbon without eating anything first.

And then, he saw the corners of Beth's mouth start to turn upwards as a smile spread slow like honey across her lips and Daryl felt like he could breathe again.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	16. Carl

**So many have been asking for Michonne and I am going to try to fit her POV into this story. Also, Merle will appear after the baby is born. I've had his chapter planned for a while. Maggie will also get another chapter as will Rick and Glenn. The next couple of chapters after this one will be Martinez, Shawn, another Beth POV and then Amy. Thank you for all of the requests and ideas!**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Sixteen. **

Carl wanted to go home and he sighed for the countless time so his dad could hear and get the hint he was trying to send him. He was on the sixth level of his zombie video game and he wanted to get back to it; he didn't want to waste his Sunday afternoon going up and down every aisle in the stupid gigantic Wal-Mart. But his dad wasn't paying attention to him as he pushed the cart, making faces to his baby sister, Judith, as she sat in the cart, and his mom walked beside them, a seemingly never-ending list in her hand.

"Can I go to the hunting section?" Carl asked. Rick and Lori both looked at him. "I want a pocket knife for Christmas and I want to check them out so I ask for the right ones," he told them. "And I really don't care which brand of coffee you guys get."

Rick's lips twitched at that while Lori looked down at him.

"The store's too big. Your dad will go with you," Lori said.

"Mom," Carl nearly whined but he stopped himself. Whining wouldn't really show to her that he was old enough to go somewhere without adult supervision. "I swear. Straight to the hunting section and I'll stay there until you guys come and get me."

Rick looked to Lori and Lori looked to Rick. It sometimes freaked Carl out how they were able to carry on entire conversations without one another without ever opening their mouths and exchanging a word. But whatever they were "discussing", they seemed to come to an agreement and both looked back to him.

"Straight to the hunting section, Carl, and you stay right there," Lori said in her serious "don't mess with me, I'm a mom" tone.

Carl nodded his head eagerly. "I promise." He instantly turned and began hurrying from the aisle, shouting a "Thanks!" back to them over his shoulder.

He did as he was told and went straight for the hunting section without stopping anywhere else. He wasn't stupid enough to screw up this freedom he had just been granted and besides, the hunting section was pretty cool. He didn't know the first thing about hunting. It was something his dad didn't do and he didn't really have anyone else to show him how. He thought it would be cool to learn; to track your dinner down and clean it and eat it just like that. They were learning in health class at school about all of the poison factories inject into meat before sending it to the grocery stores and Carl was beginning to think either he would start becoming a vegetarian or he would learn how to take care of his own food.

"That one?" He heard a little kid's excited voice ring out as he passed an aisle.

"That could work," the gruff reply came and Carl recognized that voice. He hid himself and peeked up the aisle, seeing Daryl Dixon and Luke Ridgeway standing in front of rows of different sorts of arrows.

He knew Luke though he didn't really know him. Luke was a kid from his mom's daycare center but he was one of the little ones. Just a four-year-old. Too young to hang out but Luke seemed like he wasn't too bad; some of the little ones were so annoying, constantly following him around and asking him constant questions. Luke pretty much kept to himself and played with the Play-Doh every day.

He knew Daryl, too, though again, he didn't really know him. He was married to Beth and showed up nearly every evening to pick her up on his motorcycle. His dad had also gone to get his help to find him when he had gotten lost in the woods hunting frogs. Daryl was someone Carl wished he knew. The man was just cool. He tracked and hunted and rode a motorcycle and worked on cars and had a wicked crossbow. He was a Dixon and he knew the Dixons weren't great news but Daryl couldn't be that bad if his mom and dad had helped Luke stay with him and Beth. And Beth was one of the nicest people he had ever known and she had _married_ Daryl so how could a guy who was Beth's husband be a bad guy?

"They're pink," Luke then giggled a little.

Carl saw Daryl's lips twitch and he shrugged, taking the pack of three arrows down with hot pink feathers on the end.

"Nothin' wrong with pink," Daryl told him. "They're good bolts. Hold 'em for me," he said, handing Luke the pack, the little boy smiling as if he had just been handed gold.

"Carl!" Luke suddenly exclaimed with excitement and Carl almost cringed at being spotted. He slowly revealed himself from what he had thought had been a good hiding place and the little curly-haired boy waved at him. Daryl looked at him and gave him a simple head nod.

"Hey," Carl tried to act casual as he approached.

"Look, Carl!" Luke held up the pack of bolts. "Daryl's taking me hunting!"

Carl tried not to be jealous of a four-year-old but it was damn hard in that moment. "Cool," he was able to say, pushing his hands in his jean pockets. He looked to Daryl and almost asked if he could come along. "He gonna use your crossbow?"

Daryl smirked at that. "Thing weighs more than 'im," he was still looking over the arrows. "I'll teach 'im how to track first. And how to be quiet," he looked down to Luke who just grinned up at them both. Daryl then looked to Carl. "Your folks here?"

"Yeah," Carl nodded. "Asked to get away though. I hate shopping."

Daryl nodded but didn't say anything. It didn't surprise Carl that Daryl was the quiet sort. Daryl Dixon was so cool, he didn't have to talk.

They heard a click of heels on the floor, nearing them, and they all turned their heads to see Beth turn into the aisle with their own shopping cart, smiling when she saw them, coming to them.

"Beth!" Luke immediately showed her the bolts. "Look!"

"They're beautiful," Beth smiled. "I love the color."

"See, Daryl? Pink's a girl's color," Luke told him, almost smug at being right about something. Daryl just smirked and shook his head, tossing another three pack of bolts – these with green and white feathers – into the cart.

He was wearing a sleeveless flannel shirt and Carl could see edges of a tattoo he had on the right side of his back. God, a tattoo, too? It probably wasn't his only one either. Seriously. Daryl Dixon was so cool.

"Hi, Carl," Beth smiled at him.

"Hi," Carl said and did his best to keep from blushing.

His crush on Beth – even after she became Beth Dixon – was still ongoing no matter how hard he tried to squash it. It was one of those crushes he got when he was ten on the beautiful young blonde woman who had first volunteered at the center before his mom offered her a full-time position and even three years later, he still felt his stomach get tight when he was around her.

"Your parents around?" She asked and he felt like such a little kid right then, knowing she was probably asking because she didn't want him to be alone.

"Told me to stay put in the hunting section," Carl said. He looked back to Daryl. "What kind of crossbow do you have?" He asked even though he knew absolutely nothing about the weapon and no matter what he said, it wouldn't mean anything.

"A Stryker Strykezone 380!" Luke exclaimed before Daryl could answer, so excited, he was practically bouncing on his toes. Beth smiled and Daryl's own lips twitched. Luke then grabbed Carl's hand. "The store has it! I'll show it to you!" He said and with that, he began tugging Carl out of the aisle.

Carl admitted he was curious about seeing which crossbow it was and allowed himself to be pulled by the little kid.

Behind them, Daryl was now pushing the cart and Beth was walking beside him.

She suddenly gasped though and Carl looked over his shoulder curiously.

"Oh my god, it's perfect," Beth was saying, almost in a whisper as if truly in awe.

Luke stopped when he saw Beth and Daryl weren't following which meant that Carl could stop and look at what had gotten such a reaction from Beth.

It was a small section, little things for babies – stuffed animals: deer and rabbits and raccoons – and bibs with Lil' Hunter printed on them but Beth was looking at the onesies, one in particular. It was simple and white with Lil' Buck printed on it in red letters with a pair of deer antlers sprouting from the words.

Carl stared at her, his mouth falling open. Beth was pregnant? No way! Who else knew? Did his parents? Did he actually know something his parents didn't?

Daryl reached past her and took one down from the hook, looking at it himself before placing it in the cart.

"Daryl, we don't have to get it," Beth immediately shook her head. "It's silly and a waste of money right now. We don't even know what we're having yet. What if we're having a girl? We'd have to get a Lil' Doe one."

Daryl just shrugged. "You like it," he said and then slid a hand onto the small of her back and kissed her forehead. "'Sides, even if this one's a doe, the next one might be a buck," he said.

Beth looked up at him and they could all see the tears glassing over her eyes from his words. She smiled and let out a breathless laugh and then standing on her toes, she hugged him, her arms circled around his neck and they heard her begin to sniffle.

Luke leaned into Carl as Carl watched Daryl hug Beth as she began to cry against him. "Beth does that a lot now. Daryl say's they're hormones," Luke whispered to him.

Carl nodded as if he understood perfectly - remembering his mom sometimes crying for no reason at all when pregnant with Judith - as he looked back to watching the couple, Daryl now whispering something into Beth's ear, she still sniffling but then she laughed softly at what he said and that was amazing to Carl because Daryl just didn't seem like he was the funny sort of guy.

Then again, was there anything that guy wasn't?

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	17. Martinez

**Thank you as always. I feel like I am going to annoy you always saying that at the beginning of each chapter but even when I say thank you, it's not enough for how much support and love you are giving this story so I kind of don't care if I annoy you. I will not stop thanking you. PS - I really love this chapter and Shawn's POV is next. **

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><p>…<p>

**Chapter Seventeen.**

Daryl had been in a bad mood all day and everyone noticed. He threw around tools, cursed a lot more and his glares to everyone were even more cutting than usual. When he was like this, they were all smart enough to stay the hell out of his way and not even think of asking what was wrong.

It was only when Daryl took a break to smoke out back did Dale all but force Martinez to go and talk with him. Martinez knew why the boss was giving him the order. Out of all of the guys in the garage, Martinez was the closest to Daryl. That didn't mean that he wouldn't punch him in the face but he did have a better shot at talking to Dixon than anyone else.

Martinez nodded and took his own pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, heading out the backdoor. Daryl was sitting in one of the folding chairs they had set up and Martinez went to sink down into the one next to him. Daryl didn't even look at him. He was leaning forward, his arms on his knees, a cigarette balanced between his lips. Martinez lit his own cigarette and slouched a little in the seat, blowing the smoke upwards. Neither spoke and Martinez glanced at him from time to time but Daryl kept staring straight ahead.

"Dale sent me out here," Martinez finally spoke.

Daryl grunted – as close to a response as he would be giving.

"He was afraid you would bludgeon someone in there with a wrench," Martinez said, trying to joke, but Daryl didn't say anything and exhaled a stream of smoke. "Wanna talk about it?" He asked.

Daryl cuts his eyes over to him, narrowed slightly, and Martinez nearly held his hands up in surrender. Daryl looked away again, looking straight again, and exhaled a thin stream of smoke from between his barely parted lips. Martinez looked at him, more like studied him for a few minutes, and something clicked. This anger, it really wasn't anger like he had first thought. He recognized what this was just as well. This was frustration. More specifically – _sexual_ frustration.

Now that was damn interesting and Martinez almost felt like grinning.

He controlled himself though and tried to think of the best way to approach this without Daryl punching him immediately in the jaw.

He and Beth had only been married for a couple of months and Martinez remembered when he and Theresa had just gotten married. They were in that newlywed stage forever, it seemed, and couldn't get enough of one another. Was Beth Greene, now Beth Dixon, not giving Daryl any?

"How's Beth?" Martinez asked, figuring the best way to do this was just going in head-first. Daryl's head snapped to him, eyes narrowed. Now that he knew what it was though, Martinez was not going to be deterred or intimidated. He shrugged. "You're pissed like a husband gets pissed at his wife sometimes."

Daryl took another drag of his cigarette and looked down to the ground as he exhaled. "I ain't pissed at her," Daryl said in his low voice, shaking his head slightly.

Martinez was surprised Daryl said anything but he quickly covered it up, acting like he wasn't. "She pissed at you then?" He ventured further.

"Not pissed," he shook his head again. "Frustrated, I guess," he gave a shrug of his shoulders and kept his eyes on anything but Martinez next to him.

Beth was the one frustrated? Martinez rose his eyebrows at that. He never would have guessed that. Did that mean that Daryl Dixon wasn't taking care of his wife in the bedroom? Martinez knew better than to ask the man that flat out. He had to figure out how to weave his way through this one.

Martinez took a deep breath. "What aren't you doin' for her?" He bravely asked.

Daryl sighed and leaned back in his chair, taking another puff of the cigarette, and then glanced to Martinez before quickly looking away.

"Oh, man," Martinez shook his head. "You have to do that. You _have_ to." He noticed the tips of Daryl's ears starting to turn red. "You've never done it for her?"

Daryl shook his head – just barely – but enough for Martinez to see.

"She go down on you?" He further pressed and Daryl glared at him but Martinez didn't care. "Well?" Daryl swallowed and nodded, silent, staring at him. "Well, that makes this even worse. No wonder she's frustrated. There are always those guys."

Daryl was quiet for a minute. "Those guys?" He then questioned gruffly.

"The guys who always want blowjobs but don't think they ever have to return the favor," Martinez explained. "I bet your brother is one of those guys."

Daryl was quiet, not arguing.

"Why won't you do it?" Martinez asked, leaning forward in his chair, keeping his eyes set on him.

"Ain't never done it before," Daryl admitted in a mutter. "Wouldn't know what I was doin' and don't want it to be bad for her," he said.

Martinez couldn't help but grin. "You are so sweet, Daryl Dixon," he joked.

Daryl turned his narrowed eyes on him again, one of his hands curled in a fist. This time, Martinez did hold his hands up in a surrender, hoping Daryl would refrain from punching him.

He managed to wipe the grin from his face, allowing himself to be serious as he looked at Daryl for a few minutes. No one would ever guess it being as how his last name was Dixon but Daryl was so quiet – almost shy. He kept to himself and that was part of the reason he lived up in the woods like he did, secluding himself. He didn't like to be around other people. Not because he knew what they all thought of him but because he didn't really like people. People had never been kind to him in his life so he saw no reason why he should surround himself with them.

He and Daryl had a camaraderie, he would call it. They ate lunch together some days and talked cars. Martinez loved college football but Daryl didn't watch, usually spending his spare time hunting, which Martinez didn't do so cars was really all they had in common but that was okay. It was enough and behind Daryl, Martinez was the best mechanic Dale had. Everyone knew Daryl was his number one.

It had been surprising as hell to everyone when Beth Greene became Beth Dixon and a couple of months later, Martinez still didn't understand it and he knew he probably never would but he just shrugged and didn't dwell on it because if it worked for those two, they were the only ones who mattered in their marriage.

He knew Daryl better than most and he knew Daryl wasn't a bad guy. He could be mean and he had a bit of a temper on him sometimes towards morons but Martinez was like that, too, so why did everyone judge Daryl for things everyone could be? Just because of his last name? That was a shit deal – especially since Daryl wasn't like anything what people said about those with the Dixon last name.

"I can give you some tips. If you want," Martinez offered.

For a passing minute, he didn't expect Daryl to say anything. The man's whole face was red now and Martinez admitted it was damn entertaining embarrassing him.

Daryl's head nod was slight and barely anything but Martinez saw it immediately and couldn't resist clapping a hand on Daryl's shoulder.

"Alright," Martinez began. "First things first…"

…

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><p>Martinez stepped onto the wood porch, the planks creaking beneath his feet, and he raised his fist, knocking on the screen door. He wasn't worried about it being too early. Daryl told him to come by anytime in the morning since he and Beth weren't real late sleepers. Theresa was looking forward to the deer meat Martinez had purchased from Daryl and had been researching recipes online. She had also asked him to ask Beth if she had any favorites that she made for herself and Daryl.<p>

A moment passed and then the front door swung open. It was Beth, smiling, and when she saw it was Martinez, her smile brightened even more. She was just wearing one of Daryl's flannel shirts, large on her small frame, and her blonde hair was thrown up into a sloppy ponytail.

"Good morning," she beamed, unlocking the screen door and stepping back so he could enter the house.

"Morning, Beth," Martinez smiled at her.

Her cheeks were flushed and she looked like she was glowing. She looked like a woman who had been left thoroughly satisfied by her husband.

And looking at her, Martinez couldn't help but grin.

"Coffee?" Beth asked, already going into the kitchen where a pot was brewing.

Daryl came from the bedroom, wearing jeans and one of his other flannel shirts, his hair also messy and in disarray, and when Martinez saw him, his grin doubled.

Daryl just looked at him and his grin. He ignored it. "Let's get your deer," he grunted.

"Here, Caesar," Beth smiled, handing him a steaming mug of coffee.

"Thank you, Beth," he smiled and took a sip. "And may I just say, you look beautiful this morning. Being married to Daryl must be very good for you."

Daryl frowned heavily at him and Beth's cheeks darkened in a blush but she smiled.

"He's wonderful," she said, looking at Daryl.

Daryl looked to her, giving her a small smile with one corner of his mouth, looking almost bashful, but when he looked back to Martinez, he frowned again.

Martinez didn't care though. He just kept grinning.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review! <strong>


	18. Shawn

**My dog is once again held responsible for me getting this chapter up at this hour. Since we obviously have never met Shawn Greene, I was able to create his character entirely. And just so everyone knows what's coming up: 19.) Beth 20.) Amy 21.) Luke 22.) Glenn. Thank you as always. I'm so glad there was so much love for the last chapter because I loved writing that one. I hope you like this one, too!**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Eighteen**.

"What the hell is going on with my sister?" Shawn Greene frowned as he entered the new room where his brother-in-law stood, running a roller along one of the walls, painting it a faded yellow shade.

"What do 'ya mean?" Daryl asked, not turning around to look at him.

"She's gotten damn mean," Shawn frowned. "That your influence, Dixon?"

"Well, it's my kid she's carryin' so I guess it is," Daryl responded. "What do ya' think of the color?" He stopped the roller and took a step back to look at the wall. "Beth wanted somethin' neutral."

Shawn looked at the color choice for a moment and then nodded his head. He then looked around the room that Daryl had spent building over the past few months – a few people, including himself, helping him but for the most part, it had been all Daryl. The house was small with only one bedroom but neither were looking – or wanting – to move so Daryl had done some planning and began building the new addition – another room both for the baby and Luke – however long the kid was staying – to share.

Daryl was one of those guys who just knew how to do things. A handy man. He could unclog a drain or add an electrical outlet or build an entire room in just a month. Shawn admitted to himself that he was a little bit jealous of his brother-in-law when it came to things like that. Shawn, personally, felt as if he could do very little if it didn't involve a computer.

His mom had married Hershel when he was just a baby and he had gotten the Greene last name but he had always been very un-Greene. Hershel had tried to show him the ropes of the farm, training and teaching him in hopes of Shawn taking over one day but farm work just had never interested Shawn. That was more of Maggie's thing. Shawn didn't know what he wanted to do but he had moved to Atlanta in hopes of finding out. He still came home occasionally – more often now with Beth's due date getting closer.

"Looks good," Shawn nodded. "Yellow's Beth's favorite," he then said and Daryl nodded, obviously having known that when he had made this choice, beginning to move the roller again.

There was an extra roller set out and Shawn took it and grabbed the other tray of yellow paint, moving to another wall to begin the reason for his visit.

"These two yellow and those two white," Daryl said, pointing to the designated walls and Shawn nodded and they fell into a silence as they worked.

Daryl wasn't one for talking and Shawn didn't feel like talking that much right then anyway, his mind concentrating on the task. He couldn't explain it, and people would definitely find it odd, but he always felt this need to show to Daryl that he wasn't completely useless; not some spoiled guy with soft hands who couldn't do anything. Daryl was hard and tough and Shawn had a feeling that if the world ended tomorrow, Daryl Dixon would be the last man standing.

Shawn had already been living in Atlanta when his mom had called, practically screeching in his ear that Beth had run off and married Daryl Dixon. For a moment, Shawn had had no idea what the hell she was talking about. Daryl Dixon? How the hell did Beth even know him?

But not only did she know him. She had been secretly seeing him for a _year_. An entire year and Shawn tried to figure out how he hadn't been able to figure it out. He had always been protective of Beth – her own personal bodyguard who watched her like a hawk. He knew though – before he moved away – he had been more distracted than usual with his own life as he tried to figure things out for himself and apparently, Beth had taken the opportunity to slip off and start a relationship with Daryl Dixon.

Shawn had been furious. With Dixon. With Beth. Mostly with himself. He had dropped the ball and his sister had been sucked into the terrible Dixon vortex because he hadn't been there to put a stop to it. Everyone knew the Dixons and what they were like and now, his baby sister had gone off and married one of them.

He had driven back home as soon as he could and by the time he got there, he found his parents fine with it. Just like that. Even his mom. They told him to calm down and told him that Beth was so happy and Daryl loved her. Shawn had stared at them as if they had sprouted three heads each. What the hell were they talking about? They were just going to let Beth stay Beth Dixon?

He had driven off in a fury, towards the house in the woods where Dixon had carried his baby sister off to, fully prepared to punch him in the face and give him a piece of his mind before carrying Beth off to the safety of the farm again.

But just as he had stormed out of his car, he had heard laughter from the back of the house. Beth's laughter – light and happy – and Shawn had forced himself to take a deep breath, his hands curled into fists as he walked around the side of the house.

He stopped himself when he looked to where Beth was standing in the back, Daryl right behind her. She was holding a crossbow in her arms – or trying to – and Daryl was helping her, his arms lined with hers, helping her hold it and aim it. His finger gently covered hers to guide her as to how to squeeze the trigger. The bolt shot from the weapon, whizzing straight into the tree which Daryl had marked with a target.

"Knew you could do it," Daryl smiled a little.

Beth laughed again, turning to face him. "I'm hopeless unless I can borrow your arms every time I have to fire it."

"We can always get you a smaller one," he offered. "If you really want to learn."

"I do," she nodded without hesitation. "Gotta show you that you didn't marry some prissy, useless girl."

Daryl stared at her at her words and his hands lifted slowly, framing her head. "I ain't never gonna think you're useless, Beth. No matter what. Prissy, yeah, prob'ly. But not useless."

Beth laughed a little and playfully punched him in the stomach as Daryl broke into a smile, tugging her close and kissing her, Beth smiling against his lips before melting against him, sighing happily, her arms sliding up around his neck.

Shawn had watched with a frown before turning and dragging himself back to his car, still angry but now confused even more. What the hell had he just seen?

Apparently though, it was common. Daryl being affectionate – but only occasionally. He didn't like to do it publicly in front of others but when they were all over at the farm for Sunday dinners, Shawn would watch and see the way Daryl looked at Beth, the way his hand brushed across the small of her back or the way he made sure the helmet was secure on her head before they took off on his motorcycle. And eventually, Shawn came to admit to himself that Beth's husband wasn't a bad man.

And actually, the more he got to know him, Shawn also admitted that his brother-in-law was pretty cool. Anyone would could kill a snake, skin it and roast it over a fire he had built in the backyard was pretty cool in Shawn's opinion.

"You nervous?" Shawn decided to break the silence. Daryl nodded. "You excited?" He asked and again, Daryl nodded his head. "That's good. Babies are a good thing to be excited about. And I've been meaning to thank you."

Daryl looked at him, the question in his eyes.

Shawn smirked a little, going back to painting. "Because you're giving my mom a grandchild, she's laid off about me settling down myself."

Daryl smirked a little himself, his roller moving up and down the wall.

Shawn continued. "You're obviously the wrong guy to ask but seriously. Why the hell would anyone want to get married? My sister, your _wife_, just bit my head off because I knocked on the door too loud."

"S'hormones," Daryl said.

"She won't be able to use that excuse in a couple more months," Shawn said.

"Her hormones will be even crazier after the baby gets here," Daryl told him, the paint roller never stopping. "Her body's got to get itself right after the pregnancy."

Shawn stopped his own painting and looked at him. "How do you know that?"

"Got a pregnancy book from the library. Read it in there," Daryl shrugged.

And Shawn didn't know why that was surprising to him. That was something Daryl – the Daryl he had gotten to know and not the Daryl Dixon everyone else thought him to be – would do.

"Well, no offense then, but I think I'll be staying away for the next few months until it's safe again," Shawn said.

"That's what me and Beth were countin' on," Daryl replied.

Shawn stared at him, mouth open, aghast, and he saw Daryl's lips twitch in a smile as he continued painting. "Damn, Dixon. Are you pregnant, too?"

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	19. Beth - Part III

**I was thinking this story would be around 30 chapters. I still have more characters to write for but I'm thinking the last few chapters will be just from Beth and Daryl's POV. Thank you so, so much for not getting tired of this story yet.**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Nineteen.**

It was a cool night but it felt good against her heated skin as she sat on the top step of the back porch, hugging her knees to her chest and looking up through the canopy of the trees overhead. She had slipped from the bed when she had to use the bathroom, finding her underwear and her sweater on the floor, putting both on as she left the room, leaving him sleeping in the bed.

She had felt too wide awake though; too anxious, her mind racing with what she had just done. A few hours earlier, Daryl Dixon had been showing her how to change the oil in her car and she had kissed him. But not only had she kissed him but he had kissed her back and the next thing she knew, they were stumbling into his house and falling onto his bed.

It had only lasted a few minutes and he had been so embarrassed after, he hadn't even been able to look at her. Beth had just smiled and kissed him slowly, telling him that it had been wonderful. And it was the truth. It had been short and she hadn't really gotten the time to feel anything close to her own pleasure but just being there, beneath him, it had been wonderful and suddenly, she knew it was her favorite place in the world to be.

She wasn't sure if she could stay; if he wanted her to stay. But she slipped herself beneath the covers and settled her head down on his pillow and he hadn't said anything that would kick her out. He settled himself down beside her, slightly tense, but eventually, she felt him begin to relax and they both fell asleep.

She smiled to herself as she saw the faint twinkling of stars through the tree leaves. It was so quiet except for crickets and cicadas and the occasional hoot of an owl. No loud neighbors or too loud stereos or cars passing by. Even the farm wasn't this quiet. She sat there and let it wash over her and she knew why Daryl preferred to live out here. Most people thought he lived out here so he could do some sort of dastardly deed – more than one thinking he cooked meth – but she sat there and listened to the quiet night and she suddenly felt this yearning in her chest that she could stay here.

She knew it was silly. Yes, Daryl had kissed her back and they had had sex but that didn't mean he liked her. She had absolutely no idea whether he had feelings for her or not. She could just be that girl who wouldn't leave him alone and asked him to teach her things about cars. She could just be that girl he couldn't get rid of; who, even now, was still there, sitting on his back porch as if she belonged there.

And she knew it was silly to be in love with him. She had only known him for a couple of weeks and yet, there was this clenching in her stomach and twisting in her heart. She thought about him all of the time. When she wasn't with him, she wanted to be and when she was with him, she didn't want to be anywhere else. She couldn't help it. She believed in love at first sight and she knew, without a doubt in her mind or heart, that she not only loved Daryl Dixon but was _in_ love with him as well.

And she didn't even know if he liked her.

He probably thought she was easy; some girl who did this sort of thing all of the time when that was the furthest thing from the truth. Her first, her only, had been her ex-boyfriend, Jimmy, when they were seniors in high school and there hadn't been anyone after him. Not until Daryl. She had expected to be scared – having sex with an actual man and not some teenage boy – but she had laid there with Daryl above her, kissing him and spreading her thighs and she had felt nothing but excitement.

She jumped a bit when the screen door behind her screamed on its hinges and she turned to look over her shoulder to see it was Daryl. Who else would it be? He was wearing his jeans again and the shirt he never took off.

"Thought you left," he said, stepping outside.

Beth felt a flush on the back of her neck and she pulled her legs from her chest. "Oh, I'm sorry. I can go-"

"You don't have to," he shook his head and Beth felt her heart drumming in her chest as he sat down next to her, pulling a pack of cigarettes and a lighter out. He looked to her just as he was about to pop one into his mouth. "You care?" He asked and she smiled a little, shaking her head.

She brought her knees back to her chest and they sat side by side in silence, she looking back up towards the sky and he smoking his cigarette.

"It's beautiful out here," she commented softly.

Daryl nodded and didn't say anything so she fell quiet again, too. She wanted to talk with him, get to know him better, but at the same time, she was enjoying just sitting there with him, not talking. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence – at least not for her.

She felt something land on her leg and looking, she smiled when she saw that it was a ladybug. With gentle fingers, she guided it onto her index finger and she looked at it, holding it up. And when it flew away again, she turned her head, still smiling, and saw Daryl watching her. She smiled softly at him and couldn't help but feel a little disappointed when he turned her head away, looking ahead.

"'M'sorry," he mumbled then.

"For what?" She asked, looking at him.

"For earlier," he exhaled a cloud of smoke before turning his head back towards her.

She shrugged a shoulder. "I liked it," she told him softly, still smiling a little, feeling her cheeks warm. "Didn't you?" She then dared herself to ask.

Daryl shrugged indifferently. "Was fine."

Beth couldn't lie. That stung a little. A lot. She looked down and she tried her best to swallow down the thickness of her throat. She knew she was no expert at sex but it wasn't like he was either. She hadn't thought she had been horrible. Nothing that had happened between them had been horrible. Apparently, she was wrong though.

She felt the self-doubt crashing in her chest and she tried to keep her breathing even. She heard him sigh next to her and he stubbed the cigarette out on the step.

"Didn' mean that," he muttered softly. "You was better than fine."

She nodded too quickly, not really believing him, knowing he was probably just saying that to keep her feelings from getting hurt. Too late.

"Beth," he said her name and his hand reached out to touch her arm, his fingers light and barely there. She lifted her eyes and looked at him, his looking right at her. "I should 'ave been better for you," he said, his hand already slipping away.

"Daryl, you're exactly who I want. You were wonderful," she told him then in soft words and he smirked then, shaking his head and looking away, clearly not believing a word she said.

But she was feeling brave again and she leaned in close to him. Daryl turned his head towards her. He didn't say anything but his eyes never left hers. And when she pressed his lips to hers, she nearly sagged with relief when she felt the softest pressure from him returned against her lips. She kissed him softly, slowly, as if she was trying to get drunk from his very taste and she felt his hand lift to the back of her head, fingers in her hair, and she shifted, trying to get closer to him.

Slowly, Daryl turned himself towards her and she found herself being lowered onto the porch, the wooden planks hard beneath her back but she didn't care because Daryl was above her, keeping her warm as he kissed her and touched her gently.

His kisses were hesitant, each one given as if he expected her to make it the last, but Beth's fingers tunneled through his hair and made sure he stayed close.

She knew she should have been cold, lying on the hardwood floor outside like that in just her sweater and underwear but Daryl was so warm and heavy on top of her and she felt none of the chill on her exposed skin. He tasted like smoke and ash but it didn't disgust her because it was a taste that belonged to Daryl.

She gasped with surprise when she felt his hand suddenly sliding up her inner thigh. He took her reaction as to her not wanting it but she grabbed his hand, gripping it and stopping him from pulling it away. He pulled his lips back and she looked up at him, both of them frozen; even their breathing seemed to have stopped.

"Yes," she then whispered with a slight head nod.

Daryl kept staring at her and she looked up at him and she had no idea what he was going to do or what he was thinking. She couldn't read him.

She hoped she would be able to someday.

She felt his fingers twitch and then slowly, he began moving them upwards, closer to the apex of her thighs. She felt warm and wet and she bit down on her bottom lip, feeling a moan bubbling in her throat. Daryl never took his eyes from her as he moved her underwear to one side, the cold air colliding with her, making her gasp again. And when he touched her – hesitant and slow, still waiting for her to stop him – her eyes fluttered shut and her back arched slightly. She moaned out into the night, her voice being carried off into the quietness of the woods.

He had set his alarm for five o'clock so she would have plenty of time to get home and get herself ready for work. Beth had thought ahead though. She had packed a small gym bag of fresh clothes to wear and when they woke up the next morning, she asked him shyly if she could use his shower.

"Yeah," he seemed hesitant though.

"It's okay," she smiled softly and pulled out her own towel from the bag.

He seemed to breathe a little easier when he saw it and she wanted to laugh because he was so unsure of what to do and she found it to be rather adorable. Daryl Dixon adorable. Who would have ever guessed?

She wasn't surprised that his bathroom wasn't clean and the shower she took was quick, using his bottle of generic shampoo, wishing she had conditioner but mentally reminding herself that she would bring some next time. Next time. God, she really hoped there was a next time.

She toweled herself off and was glad she brought her own comb to work through the snarls of her hair. As she looked at herself in the mirror, she couldn't help but smile. She was happy. So, so happy and it all was because of that man outside the door. People would think she was too young or naïve or just plain stupid but she was happy because she was in love and she had made a move and at least for last night, Daryl had wanted her, too.

When she stepped from the bathroom, the towel was wrapped around her body, her hair dripping water droplets down her skin and Daryl was in the kitchen, making coffee. He looked when he saw her and stilled for a moment, his eyes slowly raking up and down her body wrapped in nothing but a towel and she felt herself flush.

"Uh," he started to say and then cleared his throat. "I'm makin' coffee and toast…"

"That sounds great," she smiled. "I'm just going to get dressed."

He nodded and finally turned his head away from her. She hesitated for another moment though she wasn't sure why but then she finally turned away to go back into the bedroom and change into the clothes she had brought with her. She did her best to dry her hair and comb it again. He didn't have a mirror in his bedroom so she used the one in his bathroom, trying to make herself as presentable as she could.

Back out in the kitchen, Daryl had poured two cups of coffee and was taking a jar of grape jelly from the refrigerator. He turned when he heard her.

"I don't know how you take it," he grunted. "Don't have any cream."

She smiled and shook her head. "I take it black," she said.

He nodded and then turned away again, busying himself with pulling the slices of bread from the toaster. She slowly sat down in one of the chairs at the table, watching him. He had fingered her just a few hours ago outside on his back steps. He had brought her to orgasm and he had looked at her so amazed when he had. And before that, he had been inside of her, connecting their bodies as close as human beings could be, and though she wouldn't tell him it yet, she considered it to be making love what they had done.

And now, he couldn't even look at her.

She took a sip of her coffee. "Can I see you again?" She asked.

She wanted to see him again – and again – and she was going to put herself out there and ask flat-out. There was no point in hiding it or keeping it to herself. Life was too short, as her mom said. Of course, her mom didn't mean that in regards to sleeping with Daryl Dixon but that saying applied right now more than any other.

Daryl's back was still turned towards her and she felt herself holding her breath, having no idea how he would respond. She felt as if she waited forever and he still didn't turn around to look at her. Was it really that hard of a question for him?

But when she saw him nod his head, she exhaled a soft breath and smiled to herself.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	20. Amy

**Two chapters in one day. And I plan to have another one up at my usual time tomorrow morning, too. This chapter is so damn random. I don't even know how else to explain it and yet, I really enjoyed myself while writing it. Coming up: 21.) Luke 22.) Glenn 23.) Daryl 24.) Bob 25.) Merle and 26.) will be both Beth and Daryl. Thank you so much for reading and the support and encouragement! Every single review I get gives me the biggest smile on my face. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twenty.**

Amy took a deep breath when she saw him enter the diner. He sat down at the counter as he usually did and turned the ceramic white mug over to signal he wanted coffee. She felt her stomach flutter as she took the pot that had just been freshly brewed and came to stand on the other side of the counter in front of him.

"Hi, Daryl," she greeted, filling the mug with the steaming liquid. "Need a menu?" She asked him as she always did though she knew he never wanted one.

Daryl grunted and shook his head, grabbing a packet of sugar and shaking it back and forth between his thumb and index finger. She couldn't help herself but stare at his hands. They were rough and almost always dirty – either with oil or actual dirt. She could just imagine how they would feel running over her skin. Sometimes, when she thought of it, she actually got shivers.

"Biscuits an' gravy," he grunted his usual order and she nodded, having already written that down on her pad.

He always came in during the mornings for breakfast and he always ordered biscuits and gravy. Sometimes, he came in during the afternoons or the evenings too and he always ordered a cheeseburger and fries. Every single time. And Amy always made sure she was his waitress when he came into the diner.

It was barely five in the morning and he was one of four customers, the others at different tables. Daryl was the only one to sit at the counter. Amy didn't want to hover around him. She knew how much he would hate that. It would probably surprise him – or freak him out – just how much she knew about him. She couldn't help it though. She tried to remember a time when she hadn't had a crush on Daryl Dixon but it seemed so long ago and it only grew with each passing day.

She didn't tell anyone of her feelings though. He, after all, was Daryl Dixon and she couldn't even begin to imagine the reaction everyone would have – especially her sister. Twelve years older than her, Andrea was so protective of her. Annoyingly so. She would flip the hell out if she knew her little sister got butterflies in her stomach every time Daryl Dixon came into the diner and she would watch him, having the dirtiest fantasies about him.

She went to go put his order in with the cook and she knew he didn't like to be crowded so she went to the end of the counter and pretended to be busy, wiping it down. Her eyes looked towards him every few minutes. The sun hadn't even risen yet but it was already warm out. He wore dirty jeans with a hole in one knee and a sleeveless shirt with his usual black leather vest with the white angel wings on the back. Amy wiped the Formica countertop and tried to keep herself from drooling at his biceps.

She didn't understand how other girls in town didn't see it. Was the only reason they stayed away from him was because of his last name? Did they not see how handsome he was; how big and strong and _manly_ he was? Who cared if he was a Dixon? Honestly, that just made him even more appealing to her. He was a Dixon – a bad boy personified.

She bit her lip as she felt her cheeks flush, watching him as he sipped his coffee and sat there, not doing anything else; thinking about god knows what. She wanted to go and talk with him but Daryl was a man of very few words. She wondered if he would say anything if she asked him to have sex with her in the back alley behind the diner.

She didn't mind, of course, that no other girl paid attention to him. That just meant that when she finally did make her move – and she would – she would have no competition. It could be just her and him and she could finally get her bad boy. The cook hit the bell, signaling the order up, and Amy hurried to collect Daryl's plate of biscuits and gravy. She slid it in front of him.

"Do you need anything else?" She asked. Daryl grunted and shook his head, picking up his fork. "I'll get you more coffee," she said and he didn't protest as she went to get the pot and came to fill his almost empty cup. "How has the garage been?" She asked, taking an internal deep breath, standing across from him, watching as he ate.

"Busy," he answered and his voice was so gruff and rough, it gave her shivers.

She was surprised he had answered at all but now she was encouraged to continue.

"My car's been making this weird hissing sound," Amy said and he lifted his eyes to look at her. "If I brought it to Dale's, would you be able to take a look at it?"

He shrugged and looked back down to his plate, taking another bite of his breakfast. "Prob'ly your radiator hose," he said. "Bring it by the garage."

Amy burst into a smile. "Thank you, Daryl. I know absolutely nothing about cars. I should probably learn a few things."

She looked at Daryl expectedly then but he didn't look at her again as he continued eating. She suppressed a sigh though she wasn't really surprised that Daryl hadn't picked up on her hint. Daryl wasn't like other men. He didn't flirt unabashedly with her every time he came in. Hell, he didn't even talk. She might have even thought he was gay or asexual but sometimes, she swore she felt him looking at her as she walked away. She always made sure to sway her hips just a little bit more for him.

He was such a walking contradiction. He was a Dixon. He rode a motorcycle and had tattoos and smoked and hunted and worked on cars and she had always wanted a bad boy. She just didn't know how to approach a completely oblivious bad boy.

He finished his breakfast and drained his cup and stood from the stool, pulling his wallet from his back pocket. He handed her a ten dollar bill and then with a simple head nod, he turned and walked out of the diner, Amy looking longingly after him.

…

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><p>Daryl always came into the diner for breakfast around five but when the hour came and went without him, Amy couldn't help but grow a bit worried. That wasn't like him. Daryl was a very regimented man. He had his schedule and he always stuck with it, never wavering from it.<p>

Maybe he was sick. Maybe he had fallen and was all alone in his house in the woods, unable to reach the phone and call for help. Maybe there had been a terrible accident and he was seriously hurt.

When six o'clock came and passed, Amy's stomach was knotted with worry, her eyes constantly going to the door every time a new customer arrived, and she had spilled more than one cup of coffee and had gotten more than one order mixed up.

"What is going on with you?" Rosita, the other morning waitress, asked. "Are you okay?" She handed Amy a towel to clean up another spill.

"I just feel awful this morning," Amy said which wasn't exactly a lie.

"Maybe you shouldn't be breathing all over people's food then. Go home, Amy," Rosita said, her fingers already going to Amy's apron and untying it for her. "I'll tell Abraham. Go home and get some rest. You look like shit."

And Amy would have laughed if it wasn't almost six-thirty and Daryl wasn't there.

She was barely able to get out a "thank you" to Rosita before she was rushing from the diner to her car. She had never been to his house but she knew where he lived. Everyone knew where he lived. It was just a house no one ever went to. As she climbed up the road and saw his house through the trees, her foot slowly began to lift from the gas when she saw another car parked there already. Daryl had a motorcycle and a pickup truck. He didn't have a car. Who's car was that? It was way too nice to belong to Merle Dixon. Besides, Merle would never own a Subaru.

Something told herself to stop the car before she could reach the house. She parked it a bit away and watched the house through the trees, waiting to see who was with Daryl because someone was definitely with him and the worry in her stomach for his wellbeing was slowly being replaced with a fiery jealousy.

She didn't have to wait long. She saw the front door open and the screen door being pushed open and Amy's mouth fell open when she saw a petite girl with blonde hair and pale skin step onto the porch, wearing a dress and cardigan sweater and looking completely out of place stepping out of that house. Daryl was right behind her and there was a small smile on his face.

Beth Greene?! Amy almost wanted to shout in disbelief. Beth Greene, goody two-shoes extraordinaire, was stepping out of Daryl's house and Daryl was smiling? That slut! How did those two even know one another? What was she doing there?

She watched as Beth spun towards Daryl and her arms slid around his waist with a familiarity that Amy couldn't understand. And with a held breath, she watched as Daryl's own arms – those dirty and muscular arms that she always drooled over – circled around Beth and pulled her in close to his chest.

She swallowed when she then watched as Daryl lowered his lips and Beth tilted her chin up and their lips met in a kiss. Again, a kiss of familiarity and ease and it obviously wasn't the first one they had ever shared.

Amy felt sick to her stomach though in the back of her mind, she knew she had no right to feel angry or jealous. She had never had any sort of claim on Daryl Dixon and it clearly didn't matter if she wanted him. No matter how obvious she had thought her flirting towards him had been, he obviously didn't want her.

He wanted Beth Greene. Of all girls in town. Beth "holier than thou" Greene. Amy wondered how serious they were. Maybe they weren't serious at all and this was just a fling between them. Yeah, Amy smiled to herself. Maybe she still had a shot. There was no way Beth Greene could keep a man like Daryl Dixon interested.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	21. Luke - Part II

**I really love writing Luke's POV and the way he looks at Daryl and Beth and his life with them. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twenty-One.**

His own bed in his own room. He woke up every morning and could hardly believe it. The room smelled of wood and fresh paint and he opened his eyes every morning, blinking at his surroundings and always smiling to himself. When the baby came, he would be sharing the room but he didn't care. If it meant he could stay here, he would share the room with a hundred babies.

The door was open slightly and just as he was sitting up, Daryl appeared in the doorway. It was still dark outside, the sun just beginning to poke above the horizon, shooting streaks of pink and purple through the sky.

Without a word, Daryl came into the room and Luke pushed the covers from his body as he swung his legs around and stood from the bed. Daryl went to the dresser and pulled out a pair of jeans and bright neon orange sweatshirt as well as a pair of thick socks and fresh underwear.

"Beth's makin' breakfast," Daryl said, setting the clothes down on the bed. Luke nodded, yawning. "You still wanna come?" Daryl asked, watching him.

"Yes!" Luke exclaimed, his little voice so loud in the silent morning, and Daryl smirked a little, nodding.

"Get dressed," Daryl said, leaving the room again and closing the door behind him.

Luke got dressed as quickly as he could. Beth and Daryl got most of their clothes at thrift stores or Wal-Mart and they had begun doing the same for Luke. He had never had so many clothes. More than two shirts. More than one pair of jeans. Actual pajamas to wear to bed every night. Daryl had found the orange sweatshirt for him at the Salvation Army and told him it was perfect for him to wear hunting. "So I can't lose you," Daryl had gruffly explained.

The sweatshirt was too big, the sleeves hanging past his hands, but Luke loved it. His very own hunting sweatshirt. Luke didn't like to think about leaving. He didn't like to remind himself that Daryl and Beth weren't his real parents and that his own parents would return eventually. He just hoped that when the day came when he did have to leave, he would get to take this sweatshirt with him.

Daryl and Beth were both in the kitchen, Daryl sitting at the table, sipping a cup of coffee and chewing a piece of toast, and Beth was at the stove, stirring a small pot of oatmeal. She fixed Luke a bowl nearly every morning. She was still in her pajamas, her stomach so big now and Luke knew the baby was going to be here soon.

"Morning, sweetie," Beth smiled to him when she heard him. "Did you make your bed?" She asked, grabbing a bowl for him. She scooped some of the steaming oatmeal out of the pot and into the bowl and she set it down at the table.

Luke nodded, yawning again as he climbed up into his chair. She handed him a spoon and then kissed the top of his head. He smiled tiredly up at her and then began to eat his breakfast. Beth sat down in the third chair and rested her hands on her stomach. Daryl swallowed his bit of toast, watching her.

"You a'right?" He asked.

She smiled and nodded. "I'm going back to bed once I get you two out of here."

Daryl reached over and slipped a hand to the back of her neck, rubbing her there for a moment, Beth moaning softly with how good it felt.

"What are you two boys hunting today?" Beth asked.

"What do you want?" Daryl asked, his hand slipping from her neck, coming to a rest on her stomach, rubbing that now.

"We don't have any more rabbit in the freezer…" Beth said. "I was thinking of making that rabbit pot pie if you were able to get one."

Daryl nodded confidently and she smiled.

After he finished his oatmeal, Beth made sure Luke brushed his teeth and after Daryl tugged on his boots, double-knotting them as always, he then helped Luke with his own boots, showing him how to tie them. Beth then made sure Luke was warm enough in his coat and hat and she had fixed them some lunch, slipping it into Luke's pack before helping it onto his back.

"Be careful," she kissed Luke on the head and then gave a Daryl a kiss on the lips.

They went out through the backdoor, Daryl leading the way with his crossbow, and Luke behind him, waving to Beth, who stood in the doorway and waved back. This was his third time hunting with Daryl and he tried to remember everything he had taught him the previous two times. Quiet steps. Quiet breathing. Quiet everything. Be a part of the woods. Don't disturb anything. Shut everything in your mind off. Luke wasn't too sure how to do that one.

Daryl crouched down to the ground and Luke came up beside him.

There had been a dusting of snow the night before and Daryl pointed out to him a pair of tracks he could easily see but Luke had to squint to make out. Daryl was also teaching him the different tracks. Deer, rabbit, squirrel. Skunk and opossum, too. And the way a snake's belly weaved through the leaves and dirt. Luke's favorite was the snake. He was able to pick up on that one on his own now but he kept getting the other animal tracks messed up.

"You'll get it," Daryl told him. "Just need more practice."

Luke nodded and liked to believe that he would get all of the practice he could with Daryl. His own daddy didn't know how to hunt. His daddy didn't know how to do much of anything. Not like Daryl. Daryl could build rooms and hunt anything and fix the oil leak in his motorcycle and he could teach Luke how to do all of that, too.

Not for the first time, he silently wished to himself that Daryl was his daddy instead. Daryl never drank or yelled too loud or broke things in the house and his arms weren't bruised from pushing a needle into them all day. Daryl and Beth didn't even have a needle in their house.

"Did you teach Beth how to do this?" Luke asked once they had tracked and killed two rabbits – Luke watching Daryl and then hurrying to collect the bolts and animals once Daryl had gotten them down – and stopped for lunch.

Daryl smiled a little and nodded, pulling out the lunch sack from Luke's backpack. "I've only taken her a couple of times but she tracked and bagged a squirrel all on her own," he said.

He handed Luke a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and Luke eagerly took a big bite.

"Will you teach the baby?" Luke asked through a mouthful.

Daryl nodded. "When the baby's old enough."

Luke was quiet for a moment. "When I go, can you still teach me?"

Daryl frowned a little. "Where you goin'?"

"When my mommy and daddy come back. I'll have to go." Daryl was quiet and took a bite of his own sandwich. "Did your daddy teach you how to hunt?" Luke then asked.

"Yeah," Daryl nodded.

"I saw your back," Luke then told him, taking another bite of sandwich, remembering when he had gone into Daryl and Beth's bedroom one morning and Daryl had been tugging on a shirt. Luke had looked and saw the dark scars on Daryl's back and it looked like the scars he had. "Wanna see mine?" He asked.

Daryl shook his head. "Already seen it, kid," he said quietly.

"I like we have the same back," Luke said, digging the toe of his boot in the dirt. He lifted his head and saw Daryl looking at him. He smiled a little. "I can grow up and be just like you."

Daryl kept staring at him, not saying anything.

"Will your baby have the same back?" Luke asked.

"Over my dead body," Daryl's eyes darkened slightly at that.

Luke nodded as if he had been expecting that answer. "Your baby's lucky." He took another bite of his sandwich. "I wish I was yours and Beth's," he then said in a whisper, looking back to the ground, digging his boot into the dirt again.

They were quiet and Daryl slowly lifted a hand to the back of his head. Luke lifted his eyes and looked to him, Daryl staring right at him.

"You are," he said and Luke didn't really understand how he could be but the words made him smile a little nonetheless. "Ready to head back? You gotta help me clean these," Daryl then said, gesturing to the rabbits at their feet.

"Yeah," Luke nodded excitedly.

Back at the house, Daryl and Luke sat on the back steps and Luke watched with hardly-blinking eyes as Daryl used his hunting knife to cut into each animal. He cut away the fur and removed the organs and when he had skinned and cleaned the meat of one, he handed it to Luke.

"Take that into Beth. We'll freeze the rest," Daryl said.

Luke, excited with his task, carried the bloody meat inside. Beth was in the second bedroom – _his _bedroom and the nursery, as Beth called it – and he proudly held up the meat in his hands for her to see.

She laughed. "Well, that looks wonderful. Come on. To the kitchen," she said, shooing him from the room and he ran back into the kitchen with it.

They had rabbit pot pie for dinner – which was Luke's favorite dinner of anything Beth cooked – and afterwards, Daryl was the one to draw a bubble bath for him.

"Here," Daryl grabbed something from the cabinet and then kneeled down behind him. "Beth got this for me. Think it might help you, too." Luke looked over his shoulder and saw that it was a tube of cream and Daryl squirted a bit into his hand. He then gently began rubbing it over Luke's back. "Will help wit' the scars," he said.

Luke didn't know how a cream could help with his scars but he didn't ask.

Once he was dry and in his pajamas, he hurried into the living room. Beth was at the piano, playing a soft song, and Luke sat on the floor at the coffee table, taking out his several tubs of Play-Doh that Beth stored in a basket beneath it. He may have been little but he understood that Beth and Daryl didn't have a lot of money but that didn't bother him. He didn't need toys. He was more than used to not having anything. He just really wanted Play-Doh.

As Beth played the piano and Luke played with his Play-Doh, Daryl sat on the couch and cleaned his knives as he watched a show on television about fixing old cars. A little while later, Beth laughed softly and stood up, crossing to the couch where Daryl sat and she took his hand, placing it on her stomach.

"Lil' Buck is going crazy tonight," she smiled.

Daryl was quiet for a moment and then he smirked, shaking his head. "Maybe he likes the song you're playin'," he said, his smirk sliding into a small smile as he left his hand resting on her stomach.

"Come here, Luke," Beth smiled.

Luke pushed himself to his feet and hurried over. She took his hand and gently guided it to her stomach. He immediately felt the nudging against his hand and it wasn't the first time he had felt the baby kick but it never stopped being cool.

Beth said the baby would be here in just a few more weeks. Luke was excited to see them, to see if it was a boy or girl – Beth and Daryl had decided to be surprised as to what it was.

He wondered if it would be okay if he secretly called the baby his brother or sister.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	22. Glenn

**Firstly, I cannot believe the response I received on the last Luke chapter. THANK YOU! **

**Next, this is probably the chapter I'm most unsure of in the story but I thought Glenn needed a POV chapter. On the show, I used to like Glenn and Maggie but then they became GlennMaggie and are no longer individual characters. I find them to be quite boring and Glenn was very difficult for me to write. **

**Lastly, I am planning on two updates a day from now on. I would like to complete this story before Christmas. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twenty-Two. **

When Maggie invited him, he had been unsure. After all, weren't baby showers a women's thing? Maggie had just shrugged and told him there would be other guys there, too, so Glenn agreed and now found himself at the Greene family farmhouse on a Sunday afternoon in late September. He had met Hershel and Annette Greene before but he had never met Maggie's younger sister or her husband and he felt a little weird being at a baby shower for a couple he didn't know.

Besides himself and Maggie, Hershel and Annette, there was Beth and Daryl – of course – and the kid staying with them for a while, Luke. Shawn Greene was there as was Sherriff Rick Grimes and his wife and son, Lori and Carl. Dale Horvath, the owner of the garage where Daryl worked, was there, too. Caesar Martinez, Daryl's friends and one of his coworkers, was there with his wife, Theresa, and their kids, Eva and Esteban. The living room was crowded and filled with laughter as Beth unwrapped presents and Daryl sat on one side of her with Annette on the other, making a list of who gave what for thank-you cards to be sent out later.

Glenn hovered on the outer rim of the guests, not quite sure as to his place there. Yes, he and Maggie had been dating for a few months now and they were getting pretty serious. So he knew how pissed Maggie was about her little sister running off and marrying Daryl Dixon and then getting pregnant by him. Maggie made it no secret her opinion of her brother-in-law – "Don't ever call him that, Glenn," she had glared at him the one time he referred to Daryl as such – and Glenn stood there now, a cup of punch in his hand and he found his eyes studying the man next to Beth.

Beth and Daryl had been the last ones to arrive and Beth had been laughing as she hugged her mom, saying that this definitely was a special occasion as Daryl was wearing jeans without holes in them.

Glenn had seen pictures of Maggie's sister but he hadn't seen her in person even if they all lived in a rather small town. She was definitely young – not even twenty-four years old yet – with a small frame that made her seem delicate; her pale skin making her look like she was made of porcelain. She had blonde hair and these big blue eyes and Glenn looked to the man standing next to her – who was basically the complete opposite of his wife.

Beth was seven months pregnant, her stomach like a beach ball taped to her small body and Glenn knew it would be way too early but he was concerned about her going into labor right then and there because she certainly looked ready to pop.

"Bethy, this is Glenn, Maggie's boyfriend," Annette began the introductions.

"Hershel!" Luke then exclaimed, running towards the old man, and Hershel grinned, grunting as he swooped Luke up in his arms.

"That's Luke," Beth laughed a little, looking at Glenn. "And I'm Beth," she stuck out her hand. "It's so nice to meet you."

"It's nice to finally meet you, too," Glenn nodded his head towards her. "And congratulations on… that," he gestured a hand awkwardly towards her stomach, feeling like an idiot.

Beth just laughed though. "Thank you. I did have help," she then looked over her shoulder to where Daryl stood. "Daryl, this is Glenn, Maggie's boyfriend."

Glenn looked over to Daryl and wasn't too sure what to do. Daryl looked at him and only acknowledged him with a slight head nod so Glenn didn't attempt to shake his hand. The man probably wanted nothing to do with him, knowing what Maggie thought of him so probably assuming the boyfriend thought that of him, too.

Annette ushered everyone away from the front door and into the living room where the rest of the guests were and Beth and Daryl greeted them. Glenn couldn't help but wonder as he saw Sheriff Grimes and Daryl share a friendly handshake – the Sheriff smiling and clapping him on the shoulder – if Maggie might be wrong about Daryl Dixon. After all, Sheriff Grimes had had more than one run-in with those with the Dixon last name but he was there, this afternoon, at a baby shower for Daryl. That spoke volumes – at least to Glenn.

He knew through Maggie that Daryl and Beth didn't have a lot of money and he wasn't surprised that the others in attendance seemed to know that, too, presenting gifts to the couple that weren't second-hand from some thrift store. Hershel and Annette gave them a crib and changing table and the Grimes family gave them a high chair. Caesar and his family gave them a car seat and Dale gave them a stroller. Shawn and Maggie had gone into a present together and had gotten their sister bottles and pacifiers, toys and onesies. Tears streamed down Beth's cheeks but the smile was constant on her face as she opened each gift, thanking them all over and over again and making sure everyone got a hug.

Once the opening of the gifts was done and lunch along with dessert was beginning to be served, Glenn guzzled the rest of his punch and headed outside where Daryl was already loading the gifts into the bed of the pickup truck with Beth standing nearby, talking to her husband though Glenn couldn't hear the words. He hesitated on the front porch and then slowly came down the steps, approaching them.

He wasn't sure why he felt so nervous. It was stupid to feel nervous. He had no reason to be. Maybe it was because of what Maggie had constantly been saying for the past few months about him or what the people in town said about him. Maggie was convinced Beth was in some form of Stockholm Syndrome – "Why else would she be with him?", she questioned – and Glenn loved Maggie so he nodded his head and agreed with her because not agreeing with her would be looked at as some form of betrayal.

"I hear putting those things together are a nightmare," Beth was saying, looking at the box containing the crib.

Daryl shrugged though and carefully lifted the stroller box into the truck bed. "I think I can manage it," he grunted.

"I'm not doubting you for a second," she smiled at him. "I wasn't expecting all of this," she then confessed.

"Why not? Everyone loves you," Daryl said, now loading the high chair box. "Prob'ly don't love you for bringin' another Dixon into the world but they all love you."

Beth reached out and pinched his side. "Stop saying that, Daryl," she frowned at him.

Glenn cleared his throat awkwardly and the couple both turned their heads to look at him. He held a box in his hands, wrapped in blue and white striped paper.

"I didn't give you my present in there," Glenn said, holding it out.

"Oh, Glenn, you did not have to get us a present," Beth quickly shook her head.

He shrugged. "It's important I did. I hope to marry Maggie someday and after that, we'll all be a family."

Daryl could be heard snorting softly at that as he loaded the changing table box into the truck bed and Beth gave Glenn a small smile, taking the box from him.

"Thank you so, so much, Glenn," she said before even opening it.

"It's, um, it's actually for Luke," Glenn further explained. Both Beth and Daryl looked at him. "I'm the oldest and when my mom had my twin sisters after me, I didn't think I mattered much anymore to my parents. I know how that can feel to a kid; to feel like you're being passed over."

A fresh batch of tears clung to Beth's eyes and she stepped forward, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. Glenn wasn't too sure what to do. Hugging a pregnant woman was weird – especially with her large stomach pressing into his front and he could actually feel the baby moving from inside.

"Luke's in the barn," Beth said once she pulled away. "He's in love with the horses daddy has there and is always off to see them. You should give it to him." She passed the box back into his hands.

Glenn hesitated but then he nodded, swallowing thickly, but just as he turned to head towards the barn, he saw the little kid running towards them so fast, he almost tripped. He ran smack into Daryl, falling down, and Daryl smiled a little, taking a hold of him and lifting him back up to his feet.

"Luke, what are you doing?" Beth dusted the grass and dirt from his backside.

"Carl said there are zombies in the barn and he dared me I wouldn't be brave enough to go and look for myself!" Luke said, panting, trying to catch his breath. "And I almost looked but then I heard something and I ran away. Daryl, are there really zombies in the barn?"

"If there are, I'll take care of 'em," Daryl promised him.

Glenn watched the interaction between the three and he couldn't help but wonder what the hell Maggie was talking about. Neither Beth nor Luke were acting like they lived in fear of Daryl Dixon; as if he beat his wife every day. He was smiling a little down at Luke as Luke continued rambling on about zombies and looking up at Daryl with complete hero worship. When Beth went to pick up the basket from her brother and sister, Daryl gave her a look and quickly snatched it from her.

"What did the doctor say about you liftin' things?" He asked her.

"And what did the doctor say about not treating me like an invalid?" She smiled back at him but he just shook his head and slid the basket onto the truck's bench seat.

Daryl smirked a little and brushed his lips across her forehead. Beth smiled up at him and it was a smile as if he had just hung the sun in the sky for her. Glenn felt guilty for admitting it to himself but Maggie definitely seemed wrong.

Beth then looked and saw Glenn, remembering that he was still there. "Luke, your Uncle Glenn has a present for you," she told the little boy.

Glenn was stunned speechless for a moment at the title she had just given him; surprised Beth was encouraging Luke to look at anyone like that.

Maggie had explained the situation. Both of his parents were in county jail awaiting their court date, neither able to make bail, facing charges of possession and distribution. Daryl and Beth had been watching him for a few months – being declared temporary guardians – but that was the key word. _Temporary_. Luke wouldn't be with them forever and wouldn't it be hard enough on the kid to leave them without being confused enough into thinking they were all his family?

And as he thought of that, he realized how inappropriate his gift was. But he couldn't go back on it now – especially with the way the kid had gasped and looked at him.

"Here you go," Glenn said, clearing his throat, feeling awkward again.

"What do you say, Luke?" Daryl was the one to say.

"Thank you," Luke smiled and eagerly took the present. He pulled at the wrapping paper in a frenzy and Beth helped him open the small white box.

"Oh, Glenn, it's perfect," Beth smiled as she pulled the shirt out.

"I wasn't sure of his size. It's probably huge on him," Glenn explained.

Luke held up his arms and Beth slipped the tee-shirt on over his head. It was a bit big but not as big as he thought. It was a grey tee-shirt and in black lettering on the front, it boldly announced I'M THE BIG BROTHER. Beth told him what it said since Luke had just begun learning how to read and Luke burst into a wide smile.

"Thank you!" Luke exclaimed again and came hurrying to Glenn, hugging his leg.

Glenn had no idea what to do and he wound up patting Luke on the head. Luke then tore off again, this time towards the house, shouting for Hershel to look at his shirt.

Beth was smiling at him, wiping at her wet cheeks, and Daryl was just staring at him, frowning a little.

"Why the hell is a guy like you datin' Maggie?" Daryl then asked, shaking his head.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	23. Daryl - Part IV

**Baby Dixon will be born in the next chapter :) And I know many have been asking but unfortunately, Michonne doesn't fit into this particular story. I have been thinking about a possible sequel and if I write it, she definitely has a place in that. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twenty-Three.**

He was the one to suggest they not tell anyone. She had looked at him, a bit confused with this wounded look in her eyes, and he did his best to explain his reasoning though words were never his strong suit. But he managed to explain himself well enough for Beth to agree and nod her head slightly, agreeing to keep it a secret but telling him that she didn't want to keep it a secret forever.

Daryl nodded his head and agreed, too, though secretly, he didn't expect this to last that long between them where everyone had to find out.

It was for her why he thought no one should know about this. She was probably just going through a phase, had an itch that needed scratching, and once she had had enough, she would be off and that would be that. No one needed to know that good girl Beth Greene had been dirtied up by Daryl Dixon and that she had liked it. Her reputation would be shot to hell and he looked at Beth and he didn't know her that well but he knew he didn't want that for her. She didn't deserve that to happen to her just because of this thing going on between them.

The diner was across the street from the daycare center and some days, he would go there for lunch and sit in a booth instead of at the counter because he saw Beth outside in the fenced in yard, playing with the children and he couldn't help wanting to watch her. Even with the distance between them, he could hear her laugh perfectly and see the way her smile lit her entire face as she and the kids played game after game of Red Rover.

She was beautiful. So damn beautiful and he had no business even looking at her let alone knowing what she looked like naked and where she liked to be touched and the soft sounds she made when he did in just the right spot. If people ever found out, their heads would explode and they would never look at her in the same way. She may not have understood if he told her that but she was something good – too damn good for someone like him to have in his life – and he wanted to keep her good.

She came in the evenings – sometimes with an overnight bag on her shoulder, sometimes not – and he let her in, noting that she was always smiling when she saw him as if just the sight of him made her happy. He didn't understand that. Or her. Why the hell didn't she look at him like everyone else did? Dirty, white-trash, red-neck Daryl Dixon. Why did she look at him like she wanted nothing else in her life than to spend her time with him? He told himself that she must have been going through a hell of a bad boy phase. Isn't that what some called him? A bad boy? Nothing but bad news? So why didn't Beth call him that?

He didn't know what compelled him to show her his scars. He had never showed those to anyone – never talked about it to anyone, not even Merle – and yet, with Beth, she had made such a simple comment about him wearing his shirt and how he could take it off if he wanted. She had said it so innocently, having absolutely no idea – and why would she? – and he didn't know why he showed her. Maybe a part of him was hoping it would chase her away but another part of him – the hopeful part he always tried to ignore – wondered if she would stay.

There wasn't a single part of him surprised when she stayed.

He had left the garage a little later than usual and when he pulled up to his house, he saw that she was already there, sitting on the top step of the front porch, a bag at her feet, and looking like she belonged there. It was their third month of doing this thing between them and as he climbed off his bike, she kept sitting and smiled at him, and Daryl felt his lips twitching in response.

"Sorry 'bout that. You been waitin' long?" He asked as he approached.

She kept smiling and shook her head. "I don't mind. It's so beautiful out here."

Daryl nodded and without a word, he picked up her bag and slinging it onto his shoulder, he held out his hand. She beamed as she took it and he pulled her to her feet. With her on the step and his feet still on the ground, their eyes were even and both seemed to be taking advantage, staring at one another and neither looking away. Beth smiled softly and her hands came to a rest on his chest.

He hesitated. She was wearing a dress – she wore dresses or skirts most days – and his hands were dirty with grease and oil. He didn't like touching her like this. It only showed him even more that he was too dirty to be touching Beth Greene. But the way she was looking at him with her eyes dark and her bottom lip pulled between her teeth, he knew that she wanted his hands on her.

Slowly, lightly, he brought one hand to rest on her hip and Beth smiled faintly when he did. She then leaned forward and pressed her lips softly to his.

"I missed you," she told him in a quiet voice.

Daryl stared at her and didn't say anything because they hadn't seen one another in two days but he wasn't going to admit that he had missed her too. Why the hell would he miss her? They had only been getting together for a few months now. He had to keep reminding himself not to get used to her. She had told him she loved him several times now but he just brushed her words off – or at least, tried to – because how the hell could someone like her love someone like him?

Inside the house, Beth went into the bedroom to put her things away and Daryl went into the kitchen to see if there was anything he could offer her for dinner. He found a frozen pepperoni pizza in the freezer and he pulled that out, preheating the oven. He then went to the closet next to the front door to tug off his boots and his jacket and he heard her humming a soft song from the bedroom. And then, she began singing the words just as soft.

"But you deserve a girl with matching sparkling eyes./A girl who makes you dance 'til dawn./Who makes you want to write a song./And if you think that that is Julie, you're wrong."

Daryl stood outside the room for a moment, listening to her, her words fading, replaced with her soft humming again and he tried to ignore how much better the house felt when she was in it. It just felt warmer and more like a home. She even made the air smell better. When she wasn't there, she was still everywhere, her scent on everything and taking up permanent residence in his nose. He didn't understand how just after three months, she moved through the small house as if she belonged there. Daryl told himself that Beth Greene would never belong there.

He finally stepped into the bedroom and she smiled when he did. She had changed from her dress and sweater, having put on her pajamas: a pair of short cotton shorts and a long-sleeved tee-shirt and thick wool socks on her feet. She sat on the edge of the bed, braiding her hair.

He didn't know what it was. He didn't know why his brain shut off anytime she was near; why he found himself doing things and thinking things and saying things when she was around. Like now. He looked at her for a moment, watching her, and then he crossed the room to where she sat. He slowly lowered himself on his knees in front of her, hands gliding up her smooth thighs.

She looked at him, smiling, and he tilted his head up to look at her. He didn't say anything and she knew not to say anything either, knowing that he didn't want to talk right then. She was learning how to read him – another thing that just scared the shit out of him when it came to Beth Greene because he had never had anyone in his life who could look at him and just know what he was thinking. Not even Merle was able to do that.

His hands slid up beneath her tee-shirt and he began pulling it up, Beth lifting her arms so he could sweep it from her body, tossing it over his shoulder. He then pushed himself up and he kissed her, a hand cupping the back of her head, the other slipping around to the small of her back, and Beth slipped her arms around his neck.

Daryl kissed her with more pressure, guiding her further up the bed and then onto her back, his body crawling after her, hovering above her. Her fingers slipped down his chest, undoing the buttons of his shirt, and she pushed it down his arms, Daryl flinging it away the same as he had done with her shirt. His mouth never moved from hers as he sank his body on top of hers and she moaned softly beneath him.

He didn't flinch anymore when her hands glided down his back and held onto him, her own back bowing from the bed to bring them even closer. He kissed her desperately, hungrily; as if he was never going to be able to kiss her again. And maybe he wouldn't. Maybe this was their last night together. Maybe tomorrow would be the morning Beth would wake up and look around and realize where she was and who she was sharing a bed with and get the hell out of there.

He kept waiting for it because it had to happen eventually. There was no way he could keep her and maybe he didn't want to. Maybe he was just having his fun and when she finally was done with him, he would be relieved that she was finally gone. Maybe he was using her like she was obviously using him.

But when they were both naked and he pushed inside of her for the first time that evening, her hands clutched his arms and she softly moaned his name and Daryl had to clench his eyes shut and bury his face in the side of her throat because it pulled at his stomach. The way she held onto him and said his name and breathed beneath him and the way she felt around him, he knew he would be more than willing to allow himself to get used to this, to get used to _her_, because he didn't give a shit what she said or how he felt.

This thing between them wasn't right and it never would be.

He had gotten better at this and he could make it good for both of them and when he slipped from her again, her body was still trembling slightly beneath him. She smiled up at him and he felt himself smiling a little, too. Her hands slid onto his cheeks, pulling him down for a kiss, and Daryl settled on top of her – careful not to crush her – and he kissed her in return, allowing himself to just relax and be lazy and wonder how she always tasted sweet.

He wondered if, after she was gone, he would ever taste something as sweet again.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	24. Bob

**I know many have been waiting for this chapter and I hope it doesn't disappoint! **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twenty-Four.**

Dr. Bob Stookey had to hand it to Daryl Dixon. He was handling labor better than most men. He had found that there were really two types of men in the delivery room. The skittish sort – pale and squeamish and doing their best to comfort their women as she screamed and pushed. And then the annoying sort – wanting to take video and asking him questions about the delivery and the baby as if he wasn't in the middle of doing something else a bit more important at the moment.

Daryl Dixon was neither of these. He didn't say a word to him or even really look at him. He stood beside the bed, holding onto Beth's hand, letting her squeeze the blood from it as she screamed and not once did he look pale or like he was swaying on his feet. Then again, Bob reminded himself that Daryl Dixon was a hunter and was more than used to blood.

"We're almost there, Beth," Bob told her, sitting on his stool, watching as the baby's head crowned. "Can you give me one big push?" He asked.

Beth was crying and sweating and she looked up at Daryl, squeezing his hand. Daryl leaned over then and whispered something in her ear, his hand swiping hair back from her face. Bob couldn't hear what he was saying but whatever it was, Beth nodded and took a deep breath.

Bob hadn't been the doctor in town that long – having moved there just a few months earlier – and this Dixon baby would be the first baby he delivered since getting here. He admitted he was pretty excited.

Daryl Dixon made him a little nervous if he was honest with himself. He was a very quiet man – an intimidating sort of man – and while his wife was bubbly and outgoing, Daryl Dixon was nothing of the sort. During appointments, he stood next to his wife, never leaving her side, and his eyes were sharp, watching every move Bob made as if he was expecting him to make a sudden move that hurt his wife.

A very large part of Bob wanted to show Daryl today that he did, in fact, know that he was doing and he would be able to deliver their baby without a problem.

"Ready, Beth?" Bob called out to her. "One! Two! Three! Push, Beth!"

Beth gritted her teeth and clutched Daryl's hand as she pushed as hard as she could.

He knew the couple had wanted to keep the sex of their baby as a surprise and as Beth pushed and he pulled the baby out, covered in the blood and mucus from within, Bob took a quick look and broke into a grin. The baby was crying at the top of its lungs and Bob held it up for both parents to see. Now was when Daryl was beginning to look a bit pale and Bob smiled behind his face mask.

"It's a boy," he announced to both of them and Beth promptly burst into tears, smiling and laughing at the same time as she looked at her son for the first time.

Bob looked to Daryl. "Would you like to cut the cord?" He asked.

He wasn't too sure what Daryl would say. Some dads wanted to. Some didn't. He had no idea which one Daryl would be. But then Beth put a hand on his back and gently pushed him forward and Daryl stepped to the baby, his eyes never leaving his wailing son, as Bob handed him the surgical scissors and showed him where to cut. Daryl hadn't said a single word yet and Bob couldn't decipher the look on his face.

Karen, his nurse, took the baby with a smile, wrapping him in a blanket. "Here, Beth. We'll take him to weigh him and clean him in a minute," she said as she settled the baby in Beth's arms.

The baby was still crying and Beth was crying, too, as she looked down at her son and no matter how long Bob had been doing this, he never get tired of seeing that look on a woman's face when she looked and held her baby for the first time. Bob began to clean Beth up, stich her up again, and once he was done, he pushed the stool away, pulling down his face mask and pulling his gloves off, pitching them into the nearby bin.

Karen came and took the baby, who had begun to quiet down, assuring Beth that she would be right back with him before she took him to get him cleaned up a bit. When she returned, this time, she came to Daryl with the baby.

"Here you go, dad," Karen smiled and passed the baby into Daryl's arms. For a moment, the man looked completely lost and Karen had to adjust his arms to show him how to hold him securely.

Bob wrote a few notes down in Beth's chart while watching the new parents. Beth was smiling faintly, looking now thoroughly worn out in the bed, as she watched Daryl holding their son, the man staring down at the baby, not even blinking. Daryl then looked to Beth and he bent towards her, brushing his lips across her forehead.

"He kicked your ass," he said to her softly and Beth laughed, nodding. Daryl looked to their son once more and then gently, he passed the baby back into Beth's arms.

"Eight pounds, six ounces," Karen told Bob so he could write it down in the chart and she then began cleaning the room around them.

"Can't believe a little woman like you pushed a baby like that out," Bob smiled.

Beth laughed softly, her eyes never leaving her son, and Daryl eased himself down onto the bed beside her, his eyes also staring at the baby and nowhere else.

"Have you thought of names yet?" Karen asked.

Beth nodded, leaning back slightly, feeling Daryl directly behind her. "Hunter," she said, lifting her head to smile at her before turning her head to look at Daryl. "Hunter?" She then asked.

Daryl looked at her, one corner of his mouth twitching, and he nodded. He leaned in then and kissed the side of her head softly and Beth smiled serenely, closing her eyes and leaning into him.

"We'll get the birth certificate ready for you," Bob smiled. "Hunter seems like the perfect name for him." He closed the folder he was writing in. "We're going to take Hunter to the nursery for a little bit while we move Beth to another room and get her cleaned up a bit, too. You'll all be out of here tomorrow afternoon," he said.

"That soon?" Daryl finally spoke and Bob tried to remember if the man had ever addressed him directly, usually only talking to Beth during their appointments.

Bob smiled at him. "Your wife and son are both perfectly healthy," he assured him. "There's no reason for them to stay more than a night."

Daryl nodded and didn't say anything else and then looked back to the baby.

Beth turned her head to look at him. "Can you go tell my parents and Luke?" She asked. "They've been waiting a long time." Daryl nodded and slowly slid from the bed. He hesitated though, looking down back to Beth and Hunter. Beth reached a hand out, brushing it against his. "We're not going anywhere," she told him softly.

Daryl exhaled a deep breath and nodded once more. "You need anythin'?" He asked.

"That blanket we got at the shower – the blue fleece with white lambs on it?" She said and he nodded. "Could you get that? I want him wrapped in that."

"Yeah," he nodded. "I'll be right back," he then said as if making a promise to her.

Beth smiled softly up at him. "I know you will be."

Bob may not have been in town that long but it was a small town with small town gossip and he had heard all about the Dixons. The stories about Will Dixon or Merle Dixon just didn't seem to fit in with Daryl Dixon though and Bob watched the man, wondering why everyone else seemed so convinced that he was like the others with the last name. Bob just didn't see it. Beth clearly didn't either.

Daryl left and Bob excused himself, too, assuring Beth he would check in on her soon and he had to go type up the notes on her delivery.

In the hallway, he saw Daryl leaning against the wall, the man taking a moment to inhale and exhale deeply and steadily. Bob hesitated and then approached him. He almost offered him a drink from the flask he had in his office but decided that wouldn't be the best thing to say to Daryl Dixon at the moment.

"Everything alright?" Bob asked instead, coming up to him.

Daryl looked at him and nodded, pushing himself from the wall.

"Beth did a great job in there," Bob then told him.

Daryl nodded. "Yeah," he said softly and he almost looked like he was going to smile but he seemed to catch himself in time before he did.

"And Hunter is a healthy baby, too, so no worries there, either," Bob continued.

Daryl nodded and looked down to the floor. Bob was tempted to pat Daryl on the shoulder but he refrained from doing so. He didn't know him but he was a doctor and a smart man and he just seemed to know that no one touched Daryl Dixon if their name wasn't Beth.

"And you'll do a great job, too," Bob said, looking at him, giving a small smile.

Daryl's eyes rose from the floor and he looked at him. He didn't say anything and his face appeared to be blank. Bob wondered if he had said the wrong thing or something but he didn't feel nervous even as Daryl continued staring at him.

And then, ever so slightly, Daryl gave him a head nod. "Thanks," he said in a whisper.

This time, Bob couldn't help but pat him on the shoulder and Daryl let him.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	25. Merle - Part II

**I don't know what it is but I love this chapter and have been waiting for it for a long time. I think I just love the image of it all. I have also finished all thirty chapters and will be posting two a day. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twenty-Five.**

The door buzzed loudly as it was unlocked and the guard opened it, allowing Merle to walk past him into the outer room of the visitor's area. Through the glass, he could see them sitting at one of the tables, waiting, and Merle broke into a wide grin. Daryl had said they would come and his little brother was never the sort to go back on his word – not like Merle – but still, seeing them, Merle couldn't help but feel a little relieved and he breathed a little easier.

The guard unlocked the handcuffs from around his wrists and Merle's grin only grew as he came into the visitor's room, heading straight for his family.

Beth saw him and stood up first, smiling brightly at him. "Hi, Merle," she greeted and met him as he reached the table, the two embracing one another.

"Damn, girl, you sure you just give birth?" He asked, his eyes roving up and down his sister-in-law's body, and Beth laughed, blushing, and rolled her eyes at him.

Daryl stood up slowly so not to disturb the baby he was cradling in his arms. He looked at Merle, one corner of his mouth moving upwards in a smile, but Merle was distracted, staring down at the little baby in his little brother's arms. Hunter Thomas Dixon. Daryl had sent him a picture a couple of days after Hunter was born and Merle had it taped in his cell. The baby was a month old now and Beth and Daryl brought him to see his Uncle Merle as soon as they could.

Merle had been locked up in county for almost six months now and was probably looking at another twelve but it didn't really matter much to him anymore. If he wasn't out, he was in and that was the way it had always been. He didn't really want to meet his nephew while wearing an orange jumpsuit but it was what it was.

Without a word, Daryl passed Hunter into Merle's arms, Merle immediately remembering how to hold a baby from when he had held Daryl when he was this size. Merle didn't say anything as he stared down at the baby and slowly, he sat down in one of the hard plastic chairs. Hunter was sucking on a pacifier, his eyes closed and his tiny hands curled into fists. He wore a simple white onesie and had a black cap on his bald head.

He was so soft and clean and smelled like baby powder. Merle couldn't look away from him. His baby brother had his own baby now. It was unbelievable.

"It's not much but we put a bit of money into your commissary," Beth said and Merle finally lifted his eyes from the baby to look at his brother and sister-in-law.

"You don't gotta do that," Merle frowned. "Don't be wasten' your money on me."

Beth returned his frown with one of her own. "You're family, Merle. Don't be stupid."

Merle raised his eyebrows at her and then looked at Daryl, who just shrugged and didn't say anything. Merle smirked a little and looked down to Hunter for a moment before lifting his eyes again. "Where's the other one?" He asked.

"Shawn is taking him fishing today," Beth answered.

"You see his dad in here?" Daryl finally spoke up.

"Yeah," Merle nodded. "Stupid shit got tossed into SHU the other day. Tell the kid I said thanks for the card. Hangin' up in my cell right now."

Beth smiled. "That's going to make Luke so happy. Thank you for that, Merle."

Merle shifted in his seat. He didn't like when Beth praised him like that. He wondered how Daryl had gotten used to it; if he ever had. He was beginning to understand more and more though how his little brother had fallen for this girl.

She was sunshine in these grey walls; a flower growing in shit.

"Everythin' else goin' okay in here?" Daryl asked.

Merle grinned at him. "Yeah, man. Hooked back up with some old friends of mine."

Daryl frowned at that but Merle didn't care. He looked back down to Hunter, who was starting to wake up, his nose scrunching and his lips parting. He turned his head towards Merle's chest and Merle chuckled.

"Think he's lookin' for his mama," Merle said.

Beth smiled. "You can feed him," she said.

They had a diaper bag on the table and Beth pulled out a bottle of milk, taking off the cap. She stood up and walked around the table to him, putting a spit rag over his shoulder and then handing him the bottle, adjusting his arm a bit.

"Hold the bottle like this or else he gets gassy," she smiled.

"They let you bring this in 'ere?" Merle asked as he slipped the bottle nipple in between Hunter's lips easily and the baby began to suckle the milk.

"They had to scan it through some machine," Beth sat down again. "Had to make sure I wasn't smuggling you something in my breast milk."

"This your breast milk?" Merle asked with interest, his eyebrows raised.

"Whatever you're thinkin', don't," Daryl frowned. Merle just grinned.

Just as Hunter was burping up on the rag, the guard was calling out that time was up and Merle couldn't help but feel disappointed.

He was never one to get visitors when he was locked up. Daryl had sometimes come but not always – Merle hadn't really wanted him to come and see him, if he was being honest – but now, he didn't just have a brother. He had a sister-in-law and a nephew now, too, and he didn't want them to leave.

Daryl seemed to read his mind as they all stood up and he took Hunter from him. "We'll come at the end of the month," he said. "That okay?"

Merle smiled, hiding his elation at the suggestion. "Got nothin' but time now, baby brother," he said. "Make sure you can bring Luke, too. Kid cracks me up."

Beth smiled. "We'll all be here," she promised with a firm nod of her head. She stood on her toes and wrapped her arms around Merle's shoulders, hugging him tightly.

He hugged her back, patting her on the back. "Take care of 'im," Merle said into her ear and Beth nodded, both knowing that he was talking about Daryl. "And thanks for the money," he said as they pulled apart. "I'll pay you back one of these days."

Daryl and Merle stepped into one another, the brothers embracing with one arm, careful of the baby between them, and Merle gave him a few pounds on the back. When he stepped back, he looked at Daryl for a moment standing there next to his pretty wife and with his baby son in his arms and Merle shook his head, smiling to himself, greatly amused by his thoughts.

"Got no idea where you came from, baby brother," Merle grinned at him.

With that, he turned and walked out of the visitor's room, meeting the guard at the door. He held his arms out and legs apart so he could be patted down and then he opened his mouth as the guard shone his flashlight inside to see if he was smuggling anything back with him. He then held his hands out and the cuffs were slapped back on around his wrists.

He looked over his shoulder one more time to look at Daryl and Beth, watching him, and he gave them one more grin before he was led away.

Back in his cell, lying on his bottom bunk, he looked at what he had taped to the wall next to him. A card from Luke, Uncle Merle written in crayon in a child's scrawl, a picture of Hunter when he was still in the hospital, a pink wrinkly alien-looking thing in Beth's arms, the woman beaming prettily, and lastly, an older picture of when he and Daryl were younger, rifle in Merle's hands and crossbow in Daryl's, a dead buck between them.

His family.

And he had a lot more months before he could be on the outside with them again. Maybe, though, this time around, once he got out again, he'd be able to keep his act clean – at least for a little bit – so he could spend some more time with them.

Family. His family. He had a family. He grinned at the thought.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	26. Beth & Daryl

**Just some domestic Daryl/Beth with their boys.**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twenty-Six.**

It was extremely convenient for Beth to work at a daycare center.

After giving birth to Hunter, she stayed home with him for two months before returning to work. Lori told her to take as much time as she needed but Beth was anxious to get back. She couldn't just sit home all day. She loved being home with Hunter but she needed to help Daryl with the bills. There were four of them now and they needed the money. They couldn't afford to have her not work.

She was able to keep a close eye on Hunter as she taught the children the alphabet and read them stories, and did arts and crafts with them, and taught them songs. The children were all so excited for the baby as well as absolutely fascinated, always wanting to play with him and hold him. Hunter was such a good baby and just like his daddy at just a few months old. He was quiet and seemed to be the sort to observe. He sat in his baby bouncer, sucking his pacifier, and blinking his blue eyes at everything around him, taking it all in.

Daryl came to the daycare every evening after work just as he had always done but now, he could no longer pick her up on his motorcycle. They had Hunter and Luke and not even the pickup truck would work. They still had her Subaru and that was their main family vehicle now though they had talked about maybe getting a bigger truck. Beth knew how much more Daryl would have preferred that and she figured that in just a few more months, they would have enough saved for a down payment on a used one.

Daryl carried Hunter's carrier out to the car with Luke chattering beside him and Beth did some last minute things inside before being able to leave for the evening.

"We need to stop by the post office," Beth reminded him once Daryl started the car again and he nodded, pulling away from the curb.

Since they lived so far up into the woods, they didn't have a mailbox and postal carrier. Instead, they had their own PO box in the post office and Beth hurried inside to collect their mail from the past couple of days and to buy a sheet of stamps. She knew it was silly but Beth loved buying stamps and choosing which ones she purchased carefully. This month, the stamps had different birds on them – colorful blue jays and red cardinals and hummingbirds.

"We need to stop by the hardware store," Daryl reminded her once she was back inside of the car and she nodded, slipping the stamps and their mail into the middle console. She turned back to look at Hunter, the baby quietly sucking on his pacifier, and Luke, in his booster seat, always quiet as they neared the end of the day, getting to be sleepy and ready to go to bed already.

In the hardware store, Luke walked beside Daryl and Beth walked behind with Hunter on her hip.

"Hey, Daryl," Theodore Douglas – though everyone in town called him T-Dog – owner of the hardware store, approached them with a smile. "What do you need?"

As Daryl told him that he was thinking of building something in their backyard for the boys, Beth wandered away, shifting Hunter onto her other hip as she began looking at the garden supplies. Her mom had always gardened and it was something that Beth had begun thinking about doing at their house but she had no idea how to start. Flowers or vegetables or maybe both? If they grew vegetables, that would help even more with their grocery bills. She studied the packets of seed in front of her.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Daryl appear beside her and she turned her head, looking at him with a soft smile.

"Get what you need?" She asked.

"Haven't decided yet. T-Dog gave me some ideas," he replied. He looked to the seeds and then to her. "How 'bout you?"

She shrugged and smiled. "I don't know. Just something I've been thinking about."

Daryl nodded but said nothing more and he reached over, taking Hunter from her arms into his, giving her a reprieve. The baby rested his head on Daryl's chest and let out a soft huff, his eyes growing heavy.

"Let's get these two home. I'm getting tired just looking at them," Beth smiled.

Once they got home, Luke went straight into his room to put his backpack away and Beth followed behind to change Hunter's diaper and to put him into a fresh onesie. In the kitchen, Daryl was pulling out the frying pan, the loaf of white bread and the pack of American cheese slices. Without a word, he began making grilled cheese sandwiches and Beth took a jar of mashed sweet potatoes from the cabinet to feed Hunter his dinner. They had gotten a small step stool for Luke to stand on and he climbed up on it now to help Daryl. Everything Daryl did, Luke wanted to do, too, and Daryl showed him how to check if one side was toasted enough and how to carefully flip the sandwich over onto the other side.

After dinner was eaten and the kitchen was cleaned up, they went into the living room as they always did to spend the rest of their already quiet evening. Hunter was sitting on his blanket spread out on the floor, playing with a collection of red Solo plastic cups. He had a few other toys but he seemed to prefer the cups above anything else, which was just fine with Daryl. "Easier on the wallet," he said.

Beth sat at the piano and Luke sat beside her. She had asked him if he wanted to learn to play and he did but for now, he just liked watching her – the way her fingers floated across the keys and the way she sang softly along to whatever she played. Daryl had told him once that Beth was strong but she was delicate, too, and they needed to take care of her. Luke didn't know what delicate meant but whatever it was, it seemed to fit Beth.

She sometimes wrote her own songs and Luke watched as she wrote on lined sheets of paper with a pencil. She began playing a song on the low keys of the piano and Luke grinned because he recognized it as the theme song that she was in the middle of writing for him. His very own theme.

Daryl sat on the couch but was leaning forward, writing something on a yellow legal pad of paper on the coffee table, a pencil in his hand. The television was on but he wasn't paying attention; all of his concentration on whatever he was working on.

"Be right back," he then said, suddenly standing up and heading out the back door.

Beth didn't ask what he was doing. She looked at Luke and declared that it was time for bed and the little boy nodded, not protesting but rather yawning instead. She picked Hunter up in her arms and they went into the nursery.

Luke changed into his pajamas and slipped into his bed and Beth rocked Hunter in her arms, singing both of her boys a soft song, feeling Hunter grow heavier in her arms as he drifted off to sleep, and she carefully lowered him down into his crib, covering him with his blankets. She then went to Luke's bed and covered him with his own blankets before wishing him sweet dreams and kissing him on the head. She made sure the nightlight was on in their room before leaving, leaving the door partially open behind them.

She went into hers and Daryl's bedroom, changing into her pajamas and then going into the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. She sighed softly as she slipped between the cool sheets of the bed and laid down. She was so tired all of the time now. Working and being a mom and wife and she was beginning to wonder if she would ever get to be lazy again. She was happy. Of course she was. Ridiculously so. She had two boys who she loved more than anything. But sometimes, she caught herself missing when it was just her and Daryl; when they had first gotten married and it was just them.

Daryl came back inside, immediately noting the quietness of the house and knowing that everyone else was in bed and probably asleep. He closed and locked the back door and turned off the lights, kicking off his boots in the closet. He made sure the front door was locked and secured as well before heading first into the second bedroom to check on the boys. Luke had kicked off some of his blankets and Daryl pulled them up over the boy again before crossing the room to the crib.

He stood there for a moment, staring down at Hunter as the baby slept peacefully. He never got tired of watching him, most days still hardly believing that he was here; that this was his life now. He was a husband and a dad and just a few years ago, he was living here by himself and thought that was how it was always going to be and he was perfectly happy with that.

But that was then and this was now and this was where he was.

He left before he could wake either of them up and he went into his and Beth's bedroom. Beth was lying in bed but the small lamp on the table next to the bed was still on and she was awake. Daryl closed the door so he could change out of his clothes and then came to the bed, sliding in beside her.

"I was in the shed, lookin' over things," he said. "I've got some extra wood and chicken wire. Got enough to build you a garden. If you wan' one," he grunted.

Beth looked at him with surprised eyes that melted into her usual warmth and Daryl looked at her for a moment before he moved his eyes upwards to the ceiling. Even after all of this time, he still didn't know what to do when Beth looked at him like that; like he was the best man in the world.

"Can we do something else first?" She asked softly.

Daryl turned his head to look back at her. He didn't say anything; just waited.

She smiled a little. "This Sunday, can we leave the boys with my parents and you and me take a ride on your motorcycle?"

He looked at her for a moment and then smirked a little. Her smile grew and she giggled softly as he still didn't say a word and he rolled himself on top of her. He sank on top of her and her arms slid around his shoulders as his lips lowered to hers.

He would never say this out loud but sometimes, a lot of times, he missed this. Just when it was the two of them. And it made him feel good knowing that Beth sometimes missed it, too.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and please review!<strong>


	27. Rick - Part II

**I know many have been waiting for a chapter like this and I hope it doesn't disappoint. I was uploading two chapters a day because I wanted this done by Christmas but I don't think I will do that anymore. I will only upload one chapter from now on and finish on Christmas Eve. Maggie's POV will be next. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twenty-Seven.**

Rick looked out the back window as Carl and Luke played in the tree house that Daryl had built, racing one another up the rope ladder and sliding down the pole. He turned and looked to Hunter Dixon, the baby sitting in his highchair, holding his bottle between his hands – able to hold it on his own now – and sucking on the nipple as his blue eyes stayed settled on Rick. He had his dad's eyes.

"Here you go, Rick," Beth came to the table and set a glass of iced tea down.

"Thank you, Beth," he smiled up at her.

Daryl came in then, having been out working in the yard earlier and having now changed into fresh clothing – which for Daryl was still jeans with a hole in them and a different flannel shirt. He came to sit down at the table and Beth poured two more glasses of iced tea before sitting down as well, chewing on her bottom lip nervously.

Neither Daryl nor Beth said anything, looking to Rick and waiting for him to begin. Rick reached into a brown folder he had brought with him and pulled out the stack of papers he had carefully transported there.

"Okay," Rick began. "Mark Ridgeway is going to be completely out of the picture. He got fifteen years so by the time he gets out, Luke will be over the age of eighteen. He basically has no parental rights over his son anymore so we don't have to worry."

"And Valerie?" Beth asked, almost drawing blood from her bottom lip.

Hunter, finished with his bottle, promptly threw it to the floor and Daryl bent over to pick it up, placing it on the table, his eyes never leaving Rick.

"She only got five," Rick sighed. He had been hoping for better news to tell the couple. "She'll be back out by the time Luke's around ten. Now, I can have you be named his guardians until then but-"

"But in five years, we'll 'ave to give him back," Daryl finished for him.

Rick nodded, not saying anything, not knowing what to say. "There's not a lot I can do. I'm sorry. According to law, she is his mother," he said even though the words left a bitter taste on his tongue.

"Beth's his mom," Daryl growled.

Rick looked to Beth as tears streamed silently down her cheeks. Without a word, Beth stood up and lifted Hunter from the highchair. Taking the baby with her, she left the kitchen and they heard the door to the bedroom close a moment later.

Rick sighed softly and looked back to Daryl. "Only way it will work is if she signs over parental rights to you. If she waves hers away, if she legally states Luke is no longer her son, you'll be allowed to adopt him and Luke can stay with you for good."

Daryl smirked at that and shook his head. "I've known women like Valerie my whole life. She'd never do that," he said. He sighed then and leaned back in his chair. He was quiet for a few minutes after that and Rick wasn't too sure what to do.

He had wanted to come to their house that day and tell them that Luke was theirs for good. The boy had been staying with them for over a year now and everyone in town could see how good the boy's life had gotten staying with them. He was clean and wore clean clothes and didn't look beaten and starved.

But Daryl was right. Valerie Ridgeway was a proud woman and she wouldn't be the sort of woman to just give up her kid no matter how good it would be for Luke.

"I'll see if there's anything else I can do and I'll let you know," Rick said.

Daryl nodded his head. "Thanks," he said though his voice sounded dull and not at all hopeful that anything else could be done about it. It was a shitty situation and Rick sometimes really hated some of the laws he had taken an oath to uphold.

"Thanks for taking Carl hunting today," Rick changed the subject. "He's been excited for it all week."

Daryl nodded again. "I'll try not to get him shot with a bolt."

Rick smiled a little. "His mom and I would appreciate that."

They both stood and Daryl walked Rick to the door, Rick noticing Daryl's eyes flicking towards the closed bedroom door. Rick saw a framed picture on the table between the front door and the couch – a picture taken at the farm that past Christmas of the Dixon family – Daryl and Beth, Luke and a newborn Hunter.

"Mind if I borrow this for a little bit?" Rick asked, picking up the frame.

Daryl looked at him for a moment, his brow furrowed, and then shrugged.

"Thanks. I'll bring it back," he said and with that, he left the house, heading back to his squad car.

He drove away from their house and when he emerged from the woods, he took a left instead of a right that would take him back to the station.

He drove for nearly an hour before arriving at the courthouse and attached jail in Atlanta where Valerie Ridgeway was being held until her transfer to the state prison for the next five years. He parked in a spot reserved for law enforcement and holding the picture frame and Luke's file, he entered the jail doors.

Less than an hour later, he sat across from Valerie Ridgeway. She had been locked up in the jail for the past year and she looked pale and too thin with circles under her eyes and a couple of her teeth missing. Some went to jail and got clean. Others didn't. Valerie obviously didn't. It was known that people could get better drugs while locked up most times than out.

Rick suppressed a sigh as he looked at her.

"What do you want?" Valerie frowned.

Without a word, Rick placed the framed picture down in front of her. Valerie stared at it and didn't say a word either. He then reached into the folder and pulled out the pictures of Luke that officials had taken more than a year ago – underweight and bruised from abuse. He placed those down in front of her next to the frame.

When Valerie lifted her head, she had tears in her eyes but she looked furious.

"What is this shit?" She snarled at him.

"You tell me which life looks better for Luke," Rick said, staring at her, trying to keep his anger from bubbling.

"You have my son staying with a Dixon and you expect me to just let him stay there?" Valerie glared at him.

"Daryl and his wife care more about that boy than you and your husband ever did. If you two still had him, Luke would probably have been beaten or starved to death by now and you know it," Rick said in a hard voice. "Look. Look at your son." He tapped the glass of the frame and Valerie reluctantly lowered her eyes to look at the picture. "You're not clean and we both know you're not going to be. You're going to prison for five years and we both know you're hardly going to think about him at all. This woman has been more of a mother to him in the past year than you have his whole life. Do you really think when you get out in five years, he'll want to go with you? That he'll want to just leave this family and this safe and loving home and go back to live with you in whatever trailer with whatever dealer you've hooked up with?"

Valerie glared at him. "You can't talk to me like that."

"Yes, I can," Rick disagreed bluntly. "You're not a good woman, Valerie. That's something else we both know." He pulled out a small pile of papers and placed them down in front of Valerie along with a pen. "It doesn't matter what the last name is. Beth and Daryl Dixon are good people and they love your son. And you're going to do one thing for Luke in his life that for once is in _his_ best interest."

…

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><p>It was dusk when Rick returned to the Dixon home, drained and exhausted. He sat there for a moment, resting his eyes. When he stepped from the car, he heard laughter in the backyard. Instead of going to the front door, he walked along to the side of the house, finding that they were all out in the backyard. Beth was sitting on the back step, Hunter in her lap, as Daryl, Luke and Carl were all kneeling at a dead doe that they had clearly caught on their hunting trip that afternoon. Daryl was wearing gloves and cutting into it, the boys watching his every move closely.<p>

Beth saw him first and she smiled. Her eyes were still a bit red, he noticed, as she approached. "Hi," she greeted. "Do you want something to drink?" She asked.

"No, thank you." He came to sit down beside her, watching as Daryl easily reached his hands into the doe's body, beginning to pull out the intestines. He was glad Carl had someone he could go to for this particular interest. Rick didn't have the stomach for it. Give him soccer any day. He looked back to Beth. "I borrowed this," he said, gesturing to the picture frame he held in his hand.

"Daryl told me," Beth nodded. "What did you need it for?"

Rick said nothing. He simply handed her the folder and he took Hunter from her lap, settling him on his, so she could look at what he handed her. She reached in and pulled out the stack of papers and when her eyes settled on the top one, she went completely still. He watched her, making sure that she was still breathing because she wasn't moving a muscle as her eyes stared down at the paper.

"We'll find you a good lawyer and start drawing the adoption papers," Rick said.

Beth's hands started shaking then. "How did this happen?" She asked and she finally tore her eyes away from the Termination of Parental Rights paper to look at him, tears flooding her eyes.

Rick took a moment. "She finally realized it was the right thing to do," he then told her softly. He then looked to the three still at the doe, Daryl explaining to Luke and Carl what he was doing, and he then looked down to Hunter, the baby slobbering over his fist, before looking back to Beth. "Any kid would be lucky to be a Dixon."

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	28. Maggie - Part II

**Two more chapters left. Beth's POV and then Daryl's. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twenty-Eight.**

Maggie stood in the backyard, looking at everything they now had back there. A tree house for Luke – and Hunter when he was older – Daryl's shed, which the door was open to and she could see all of his tools and hunting equipment inside – a chicken coop with several chickens all clucking away inside and laying their eggs – and a small garden Beth had started, all sorts of vegetables growing in neat rows.

Beyond the yard on all sides of the house, there were the thick trees of the woods stretching out for miles, not another neighbor in sight. And with the deep freeze of meat against the back of the house, the vegetables and the chickens, her sister and her family had become rather self-sufficient.

The back screen door screamed on its hinges and Daryl stepped out onto the back porch, eight-month-old Hunter in his arms. "Beth said the wait at the clinic's longer than she thought it would be. She's not sure when she'll be back," he told her.

Maggie nodded and looked around the yard one more time before back to him. "Mind if I hang around and wait for her?" She asked.

Daryl shrugged and didn't say anything else before turning and going back inside.

Maggie hesitated a moment before heading up the steps and following him into the house. She had never been inside before. It was a small house – especially for four people – but it was definitely a home, cozy and warm. The kitchen was spotless, a vase of wildflowers in the center of the round table, a pan of bread cooling on the counter, and colorful pictures by Luke hanging on the refrigerator.

The kitchen spilled into the living room where the floor was hard wood but there was a tan short shag rug that spread over much of the room. Beth's piano was against one wall, pictures of the family lining on top, and the furniture was all second-hand and worn but looked comfortable enough. She recognized a yellow blanket on the floor – Beth's baby blanket that now belonged to Hunter – as well as a few toys scattered about. Daddy's church had recently had a rummage sale and someone had given all of their children's childhood toys to sell. Hershel had bought a whole bin, bringing it for Luke and Hunter.

Daryl was nowhere to be seen and she took a few steps forward, poking her head around the corner of the kitchen. There were three doors open on the other side of the living room. A bedroom that was clearly Beth and Daryl's, a small bathroom, and she saw Daryl standing in the third bedroom, Hunter on the changing table and Daryl giving him a clean diaper.

"You gotta stop that," Daryl was telling the baby. "You're makin' this harder for me than it's gotta be."

Hunter just giggled and continued flapping his arms and legs.

"If you don't stop, I'll give 'ya a raspberry," Daryl said and Maggie could tell he was trying not to smile down at the baby as Hunter continued laughing and kicking his legs. "You asked for it," he said and then bent down, blowing on Hunter's stomach and the baby squealed with delighted laughter, reaching his hands up and grabbing Daryl's hair, and Maggie felt herself smiling.

She hadn't hid the fact for the past two years that she hated her sister's husband. She didn't even try to give him a chance. His last name was Dixon and that was all she needed to know. Her sister was good and sweet and the idea of her being with a man of that last name made her sick to her stomach. And when Beth announced she was pregnant with the next Dixon in line, she had actually cried. She was just so convinced that this man would beat her sister until she was a shell of her old self.

Her daddy and Annette and Shawn all liked him – which just infuriated her further and she hadn't budged on her feelings for him. Why should she? He was a Dixon and he always would be.

But she missed her sister. She and Bethy had always been close but Maggie wasn't stupid or naïve. If she hated her husband, of course Beth wouldn't want to see her. Maggie had asked for that but she was too head-strong and stubborn and Beth was to a certain extent, too. But Maggie knew she had to be the one to budge. She missed Beth and she didn't even know her nephew; her flesh and blood. Beth and Daryl had adopted Luke Ridgeway, now Luke Dixon, and Maggie didn't know him either. She supposed, after going so long, she didn't really know her sister anymore either.

Daryl came out of the bedroom, Hunter's diaper changed and fresh and the baby dressed again. He was crawling, attempting to walk, able to stand if he held onto something, and Hunter now crawled quickly back to his toys on the floor, plopping himself down and grabbing one of his thick plastic dinosaur figures.

Maggie stood there, not sure what to do or say. And she knew Daryl sure as hell wasn't going to say anything.

"Is Luke alright?" She asked after clearing her throat.

Daryl nodded. "Just has a cough," he said. He walked past her and sat down on the floor with Hunter, the baby immediately handing him the dinosaur while picking up another one for himself.

Maggie stood there for another awkward moment before she slowly eased herself down onto the couch, perched on the very edge, her arms resting on her knees. The television was on and as usual, a special news broadcast had cut into whatever program they had been watching. That was happening more and more nowadays, some sort of illness spreading around everywhere it seemed and every hour, there seemed to be a new report of it from somewhere else in the world.

Maggie sat there and watched as Daryl played with Hunter, the baby making noises and sounds that were in his own language but it was obvious he was wanting to talk.

"I'm sorry," Maggie suddenly blurted out.

Daryl lifted his eyes and looked at her.

Maggie looked at him. "I know you love my sister and God knows she loves you." She exhaled a deep breath and Daryl didn't say anything, just looking at her. "I know you haven't hurt her. Every time I see her at the farm, I've never seen her happier. I know you make her happy and I'm sorry for being such a bitch to you this whole time. You didn't deserve that. You're a Dixon but you're… you're not a _Dixon_. I get that now."

Daryl still didn't say anything and she didn't expect him to.

"I'm sorry," she said again, staring right at him, hoping he could see that she was being absolutely sincere with him right now.

Daryl stared at her, not saying a word. His eyes moved when Hunter did, the toddler crawling to the bin of toys they had against the wall, babbling to himself as he gripped the edge and pulled himself to his feet, swaying unsteadily but remaining on his feet. He looked back to Daryl and pointed a finger at him, making a sound that sounded like it might be "Da". Daryl crawled to him and Maggie smiled faintly as she watched Hunter slap Daryl on the cheek with one of his hands, babbling in his baby language and Daryl listened intently as if he knew exactly what his son was saying to him, occasionally nodding most seriously, which made Hunter grin.

"He looks like you," Maggie said.

"Got Beth's smile," Daryl grunted and she nodded in agreement. He looked away from Hunter to look at her. "'Bout time for his dinner," he said. With that, he stood up and Maggie watched him go into the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and pulled out a plastic container. He prepared whatever he was feeding Hunter in a bowl and popped it into the microwave for a few seconds. When it was warm enough, he took a baby spoon and Maggie's eyes widened as he brought it to her. "Pureed chicken," he said and then looked to Hunter. "Come on, Hunter. Your Aunt Maggie's gonna feed you some dinner." He scooped the baby up and promptly deposited him on her lap.

Maggie had never held him before and she held her breath, expecting Hunter to start wailing at being dropped off with a stranger but the baby just settled himself against her chest and opened his mouth, ready for his food. Maggie smiled a little and began spooning the chicken and feeding it to him.

Her eyes went up to Daryl, who stood there, watching. "Thank you," she said softly.

Daryl nodded and didn't say anything.

Outside, they heard a car pull up and Daryl looked out the window before going to the front door, opening it. Luke came bursting in a few moments later.

"How 'ya feelin'?" Daryl asked.

"They gave me cherry medicine and it tastes so good but mama says I can't drink it all," Luke told him excitedly and then saw Maggie on the couch. "Hi, Aunt Maggie!" With that, he ran to the bathroom and closed the door to relieve himself.

A moment later, Beth entered, her eyes immediately falling on Maggie. She was holding two pizza boxes from Domino's in her hands and Daryl took them from her, carrying them into the kitchen. The two sisters looked at one another and Maggie had no idea what to say, hoping Beth would say something first. Hunter saw his mommy and stretched his arms out for her. Beth smiled faintly and came to him, kissing him on the head.

"Keep letting Aunt Maggie feed you," she told the baby. She then stood up straight and looked down at Maggie. "We don't usually get carry-out but Domino's had a really good coupon. Would you like to stay for dinner?" She asked.

And Maggie couldn't stop the tears that began forming in her eyes. She smiled and nodded her head quickly. "I would love to stay for dinner."

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review! <strong>


	29. Beth - Part IV

**After the response to the last chapter from most of you, I have decided NOT to write an AU Zombie sequel. I understand that this story is a happy spot for many - including me. I will continue to keep it in the happy AU. Thank you :)**

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><p>…<p>

**Part Twenty-Nine.**

Beth told herself that there was absolutely no reason to be jealous. She was twenty-one and too old to be getting jealous – especially over a man. It wasn't as if she had any claim on him anyway. They were just sneaking around. She loved him and had told him that but he had made no proclamations like that towards her and she knew that he probably only liked her; tolerated her. What man would turn down sex? She didn't delude herself into thinking that Daryl Dixon loved her.

If he wanted to talk with Amy as the waitress smiled and batted her eyelashes at him, he could. He was a man in his mid-thirties. He could do whatever he wanted.

Still, she couldn't hide from the fact that it stung.

It wasn't as if Daryl was flirting back. Daryl had no idea how to flirt. He just sat there as he ate his cheeseburger and didn't say anything as Amy refilled his Coke and did all of the talking. She laughed then at something and it carried throughout the small diner. She dropped a hand on Daryl's arm then and Beth saw the way Daryl stiffened slightly at the contact but Amy didn't seem to notice.

Amy just kept talking and Beth continued feeling more sick to her stomach.

She scolded herself to stop acting like a spoiled teenage girl. She was just being stupid and she had to stop it.

She took a deep breath and approached the counter, standing just a couple of stools away from the one where Daryl sat. And with her so close, from the corner of her eye, she could see Daryl stiffen even more.

"Hi, Beth," Amy smiled at her. "What can I get you?"

"Um, I was hoping to get a piece of chocolate cake to go," Beth said, doing her best to smile and act like nothing was wrong because really, there was nothing wrong.

Daryl had done nothing wrong. He had done _nothing_. He was just sitting there and eating. It was Amy who was clearly the one flirting mercilessly with him. How was that Daryl's fault? And it wasn't as if Beth could exactly blame Amy for wanting to flirt with Daryl Dixon. Beth actually didn't understand why more girls didn't.

"That kind of day?" Amy laughed and Beth gave a small smile and nodded.

Amy was a couple of years older than her and they had been in high school at the same time – Amy a senior while Beth had been a freshman. Beth had always thought Amy was pretty. Blonde hair and blue eyes like her but as Beth waited patiently for her "womanly shape" to arrive already, Amy's definitely had and Beth envied the older girl's breasts and flare of her hips. Beth, meanwhile, was still straight like a pole with a hardly noticeable chest. Did Daryl like big breasts? Beth couldn't help but glance down towards her chest.

"Here you go, Beth," Amy returned with a plastic container of a thick slice of chocolate cake within. "2 dollars even."

Beth handed her the money and then gave another small smile. "Good night."

She didn't look at Daryl as she turned and left the diner again, the bell above the door tinkling over her head. She crossed the parking lot to where she had parked her car, her hand fumbling to find the keys in her bag.

She hated herself when she felt tears sting her eyes. What was she doing? Why was she crying? If she was too old to get jealous because of a man, then she definitely was too old to cry because of one. She had no reason to cry. Daryl hadn't done anything and even if he had, it wouldn't matter because she wasn't anything to him. Just the girl he screwed a few times a week. If she was anything more, he had certainly never said and she never expected him to.

She wondered why after a few months, she still was doing this. She loved him and only seemed to fall deeper and deeper every time she was with him but she knew it wasn't going to lead anywhere. Deep down, she knew. She knew that he would never want anything from her and she wouldn't be getting anything from him in return.

She found her keys and got into her car. She didn't head in the direction of Daryl's house as she had planned to. Instead, she turned and headed towards the farm, her chest aching the whole way.

For the entire day, she had been eager to be at Daryl's house, in Daryl's bed, feeling Daryl's warm and strong arms around her, feeling Daryl between her thighs. She knew when it was just the two of them like that, nothing but their naked skin and light touches over their skin, she knew no one had ever seen Daryl Dixon like that. She had always seen him as no one else had. He was a good man. Not even he believed that of himself. He was good and kind and could be so painfully gentle with her as if he was truly afraid that he would hurt her or break her somehow. He took care of her and she whispered to him that she loved him and he stared at her every time she said those words, never saying anything in return, but the way he looked at her, she had fooled herself into thinking that maybe he felt _something_.

She hated herself a little. She really did. She was being stupid and petty and pathetic.

No one was home. Her parents were off, visiting Shawn in Atlanta for the weekend, and Maggie had gone out for a girls' night with some old friends from high school. Instead of going into the big and empty house, Beth took her plastic container of cake and plastic fork and headed into the barn. She smiled as she came to her horse's stall, the horse coming towards her when she neared.

"Hi, Nelly," she nuzzled Nelly's snout. "I'll eat and then we'll go for a ride, okay?"

Nelly let out a snort to show her approval of that plan.

Beth settled herself down onto one of the bales of hay and began eating her dinner. She supposed there were some perks to being technically an adult. She could eat whatever the hell she wanted for dinner.

She heard a board on the other end of the barn creak but she wasn't concerned even as Nelly stomped on the ground with one of her hooves. It was probably just Otis. She kept eating her cake and wondering if she should really break things off with Daryl. She didn't want to. That was the thing. She knew she probably should but just the thought of possibly doing that, it made her stomach churn.

Another board creaked, closer this time, and she finally lifted her eyes. She wondered why she wasn't surprised to see that it was Daryl. She hadn't heard him come and knew he had probably parked his bike in the woods and yet, she wasn't surprised.

"Your pa home?" He asked, stopping now that she saw him.

"No one's home," she shook her head, looking at him. "What are you doing here?"

"Wanted to see you," he said and she looked at him for another moment before moving her eyes away, looking down to her nearly finished cake. She heard Daryl step closer and then he slowly sat down beside her on the hay bale. "Thought you were comin' by tonight," he said.

She shrugged. "Didn't think you'd care either way," she said and as soon as she said the words, she knew how bratty she sounded. She sighed softly and turned her head to look at him, not surprised to find him already looking at her. "Amy likes you," she then told him, watching as he furrowed his brow slightly.

After a quiet moment, Daryl then shrugged. "Don't see how that matters."

She sighed softly. "I'm trying to tell myself that it doesn't. I know we're both too old for this," she said.

"What?" He didn't get it and she wasn't surprised that he didn't get it. This wasn't exactly something Daryl Dixon was an expert on.

"Getting jealous," Beth was embarrassed to admit it out loud.

Daryl was quiet and she finished the rest of her cake, keeping her head turned away from him. They may have been too old for relationship drama – what relationship, she almost snorted to herself – but she suddenly felt so much younger than him. So young and immature and he was probably getting ready to get to his feet and leave and not come back. And why should he? She was complicating things when they didn't need to be. They enjoyed spending time together. Couldn't that be enough?

But just as she opened her mouth to apologize for being so immature, Daryl spoke.

"No reason you should be jealous," he said in his low voice.

Beth turned her head and looked at him but this time, Daryl wasn't looking at her, studying his hands instead. She felt herself holding her breath, hoping he would say something else; something more.

"Amy only wants me 'cause I'm a Dixon," he then shrugged. He fell quiet again and turned his head, finally looking at her. Beth couldn't stop looking at him. He looked uncomfortable but he looked like he wanted to say more. "I know you want me 'cause I'm me."

Beth felt her heart freeze in her chest and the air held in her lungs. She had been wanting him to say something so badly. All of their nights together, she had silently prayed for him to say anything. Anything at all that might reveal a little bit of what he felt about her. And with these words, she was certain she had never heard any other words strung together that were more perfect.

She sighed softly and found herself breathing again. She smiled faintly at him and Daryl stared at her, not doing anything or saying anything else. And when Beth leaned in and pressed her lips to his, she felt his own body relax as if he had been holding his breath and could now breathe again, too.

…

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	30. Daryl - Part V

**I cannot thank you all who have read this and loved it. I have never gotten a response like this on one of my stories on this site and words cannot express how much it means to me. **

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><p>…<p>

**Part Thirty.**

He had been tracking the deer for almost two hours and the one shot he had finally gotten at it, he had missed. He couldn't believe it. He hardly ever missed and he went to go collect his bolt once the doe had run off, shaking his head in disbelief at himself. He didn't follow its trail. He was done, tired and hungry and deciding that it was just time to go home. Tomorrow was a fresh chance to get something else.

With his crossbow loaded in his hands again, he began heading through the woods in the general direction of his house. He wasn't in a hurry and he kept his eyes out. If a squirrel or rabbit crossed his path, he'd take it out but he wasn't necessarily hunting after anything anymore.

He came through the trees to cross the road that led up to the Greene farm and he stopped suddenly when he saw the woman standing there, a few feet away from a car parked alongside of the road. He stared at her for a moment. He couldn't help it. He was never one to really notice females, he admitted. He didn't really notice most people if he was being honest. He kept himself away from them and they usually returned the favor, leaving him alone.

"Hi," this woman smiled at him and her smile was as bright as the sun.

He blinked at her, not saying anything, just watching her. She took a step towards him and Daryl almost countered it with a step of his own back but he stopped himself before he could. This woman was more like a girl – small and the doe he had been tracking probably weighed more than she did. There was no reason to take a step back from her as if she was capable of hurting him.

"Do you know how to change a flat?" She asked.

His eyes moved from her to her car. Without a word, he walked towards it and she hurried over to meet him. She popped the back hatch and he pulled the spare tire and the jack from the storage groove. He was sure not to look at her again.

She stood too close and he could smell that she had a sweet scent. Like strawberries on a summer day. She had blonde hair and it was down and kind of curled with a few of the front locks pinned back from her face. She was so pale and he wondered how she could be like that while they were in the middle of the summer and his own skin was tanned from always being out in the sun. Maybe she was one of those girls who stayed in all day. She wore a dress with a flower pattern that brushed across her mid-thighs and brown cowboy boots on her feet.

She was pretty. Damn pretty. And Daryl didn't want to look at her again.

He concentrated on changing her tire, doing his best to ignore the fact that she was standing right beside him, her scent filling his nose. He felt himself scowling. Who the hell was this girl? He had mistaken her for a woman earlier but now that he had seen her up close, he saw she was too young. She was a girl. A girl who wasn't giving him his personal space.

He could change a flat tire in his sleep and he was glad he still could so easily despite this sweet-smelling girl standing too close to him. When he finished and picked his crossbow up, getting to his feet again, she was beaming that same bright smile at him, either not noticing or just ignoring the deep frown on his face.

"Thank you so, so much," she smiled up at him.

He still didn't say anything and they stood there, looking at one another.

"I'm Beth," she then said, giving him a small smile, almost as if she was shy all of a sudden and he almost snorted. He doubted this girl even knew what being shy was.

She held out her hand then, making the introduction proper, and Daryl stared at her. There was no way he was going to make physical contact with her. She was already making his stomach swirl as if he had been drinking too much without eating anything beforehand and somehow, he knew if he touched even an inch of her skin, he'd probably throw up. And just thinking of even maybe doing something like that, his frown deepened even more. What the hell was this girl doing to him?

But this girl, Beth, kept standing there, smiling at him and holding her hand out, obviously not at all intimidated with his frown. And why wasn't she? Most people – _smart_ people – got the hell away from him when he was frowning like this.

Even as he yelled at his brain to get the hell out of there, he reached his hand out and shook hers – light and barely touching her at all and his hand dropped almost instantly. He tried hard to ignore the sudden scorching of his skin from where it had touched hers for that brief second.

He didn't tell her his name. He figured he didn't have to. If she was from this town, she already knew it. Everyone knew who he was whether he knew them in return or not. He looked at her and wondered where she lived. And then he scowled because why the hell was he wondering that? She was on the road to the Greene farm. Maybe she was one of Hershel's daughters. He knew the vet had a couple of them.

She opened her mouth as if to say something else but she then closed it again as if she had decided against it. Daryl was relieved. He didn't want to hear her voice again. With just the few words she had said to him, her voice was gentle and he could hear the kindness oozing from it and it made him uncomfortable.

He gave her the slightest of head nods and then without looking at her again, he moved past her, crossed the road, and headed into the woods on the other side, leaving her behind him and feeling her eyes on his back.

He clutched his crossbow tighter, wondering why the hell his hands were still burning. Even the hand that didn't touch her had this weird tingling in it as if it had fallen asleep and was waking up again.

He kept frowning. He didn't like it.

Daryl knew if he never saw that girl again, it would still be too soon.

…

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><p><strong>The End.<strong>

**Thank you for reading and please review one last time!**


	31. A Note from Me

A few of you have mentioned that you didn't even know I was already writing a sequel to _House Call _so I wanted to add a note to this story to let everyone know that I have started a companion piece in this particular Beth/Daryl AU titled _Orange Sky_. Check it out if you're interested. Thank you!


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